Matchmaking the Past
by shy-n-great
Summary: Hermione has managed to get herself thrown back in time, the Marauders time to be exact. Can she keep James off her and make him fall for Lily while trying to get herself back to her time? And what do Peter, Sirius and Remus think about this new girl?
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: **Me own nowt, Ms Rowling owns everything else.

**A/N:** Run now while you all can, I've started another story. Actually, I started this a few months ago but I wanted to finish it before I put it up, only I found I couldn't finish it. I write better when I've got reviews to suggest where to go, or what they like about the story. So this is my shameful plea to all who reads this to please let me know what you think. Big hugs to you all and I hope you like.

**Chapter One**

Hermione Granger was sitting in the Room of Requirement which had taken the shape of a library. She would have used the normal school library but, it appeared that every seventh year seemed to have taken up residence there. It just wouldn't do when there were giggling teenagers around while she was trying to study for her N.E.W.Ts. So, there she was, sitting at a small desk with all types of books surrounding her while she studied for her Ancient Runes exam. After all, exams were only nine weeks away and time was a precious commodity at the moment.

She found her mind begin to wander as she tried to finish a sentence about the history of a Rune symbol, which signalled to Hermione that it was time to take a break. She glanced at her watch to find that dinner would just be starting and food was just the thing she needed to sharpen her mind up again. She hastily placed a highlighting charm on her sentence that she couldn't finish:

'_**Binding Rune **– This rune is relatively new having only come about in 1976. It is a great source of magic for friends and family._'

There, that was all she needed to remember where she'd left off. She slammed the book shut as the sentence played over her mind in a flurry, like every other fact did when she was studying. It would soon find its place in her mind and would have another one whizzing around. She quickly put her notes into her bag and left the room with a quick glance over her shoulder to see the door disappear.

As Hermione speedily made her way down to the Great Hall, she found she felt odd. It was like the atmosphere was a little heavy on her. She looked around but no one was in sight, they were probably all sat down eating dinner now. Then something strange caught her eye when she reached the Grand Staircase. A door leading to an empty classroom, an ordinary door that she'd passed many times, no longer bore dozens of scratched initials in it. In fact, there couldn't have been more than seven sets of initials on there.

She gazed at it for a moment thinking of the possibilities that had made the door near enough new. Had Filch started a job and left it half done? Or had he replaced it and these people had hastily gotten to work to make their mark on the wood? With a shrug of her shoulders to herself, she pushed it to the back of her mind and continued down the stairs.

Halfway down, Hermione spotted the back of a familiar head; black hair going wild everywhere. She sped up a little to catch up to the lone figure while calling out his name, "Harry, wait for me!" Only he didn't wait. In fact, he didn't even turn around; he just kept walking down the stairs as though he hadn't heard her. "Harry!" she snapped as she got near to him. Finally, he stopped and turned round to face her. He waited until she had caught up to him but then she realised why he'd ignored her the first time; it wasn't Harry.

"Were you calling me?" the bespectacled young man asked with a cheeky grin. Hermione gasped as she looked at him. It was uncanny how much he looked like Harry from the front as well.

"Oh, I-I'm sorry," she stuttered while trying to recover from her shock, "I thought you were someone else. You look like a friend of mine."

"Maybe I can help you find him, what's his name?" he asked her while moving up to the step she stood on and draping his right arm lazily around her shoulders. She glanced at his arm in horror before shrugging it off. She eyed him up and down before realising that she'd never seen this person before.

"Have I seen you around Hogwarts before?" she questioned politely. She was still amazed at how much he looked like Harry. Everything about him screamed Harry, except his eyes and the increasing self assured attitude he had.

"Now that you mention it, you don't look familiar either," he told her with yet another cheeky grin, this time added with a wink. Then he suddenly clicked his fingers at her like he'd just remembered something, "You aren't one of those girls that were really ugly and then became really good looking, are you?" Hermione's jaw dropped open at his bluntness but then she quickly regained her composure.

"I'm sure I've not changed _that_ much in the past couple of years," she snapped before charging down the stairs in annoyance. She heard his footsteps right behind her and felt very self conscious about it. As she reached the last flight of stairs, another young man popped out from the Great Hall into the Main Entrance. He had dark hair that came to just above his shoulders and he was quite tall.

"There you are, James, I was just about to send a search party out for you," the long-haired person shouted up to the cocky person behind her. Hermione froze on the spot causing the young man called James to collide into her.

"You see, I knew you wanted me from the moment I saw you," James cockily teased Hermione as he kept hold of her so that she could get her balance back. "Sirius, I have a new friend I want to show off to you," he called down tothe personat the bottom of the stairs without taking his eyes away from Hermione's gaze. She felt sheer panic flood through her entire body as what was happening hit her fully.

"Hi, I'm Sirius," the long-haired boy, who was now stood next to her on the step below, held his hand out to her. She was still holding on to James' arm while her gaze kept flickering between James and Sirius. Finally the enormity of her situation was too much to handle and she felt herself slipping into darkness.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: **Not mine, none of it is.

**A/N:** I want to thank all my reviewers. it truly means a lot to me. I would have done the nifty thing that FFN lets you do now and replied to you all in the review, but I'm in a rush, christmas shopping to me done and all that. So I thought I'd throw this excessively dull chapter that was a complete pain in the bottom to write. Big hugs to my beta **peanuts107** for going over it. Ta much. Hope you all like.

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**Chapter Two**

Hermione could hear voices in the distance as consciousness tickled the edge of her mind. She felt herself slowly become aware of things happening around her. She was being carried by someone as she could feel herself being heaved up every now and then because she'd slipped down. The voices were male and becoming clearer and clearer with each passing moment. A sentence from one of the males finally became clear and she didn't like what she heard.

"Believe it or not, Prongs, not every female worships the ground you walk on. I'd thought you learnt that from Lily," he laughed as he spoke to the other male. Hermione's eyes shot open as the reality of what had happened came rushing back to her. She had tried to sit up, forgetting that she was being carried, and in the shock of her movement, the person carrying her dropped her.

"And I suppose that's the way I should get girls to like me?" the other male asked sarcastically. Hermione groaned as she propped herself up on her elbows. She took a moment to get her breath back and let the pain in her back disappear before attempting to get up. As she started to get up she felt a pair of hands on each arm help her up.

"I'm really sorry about that, you scared me when you moved," the first male voice spoke sympathetically. Hermione looked up slowly to find the young face of Sirius Black smiling at her. She turned her head to look at the other person and there was James Potter winking at her. She felt her heart begin to race as a hundred thoughts whizzed through her head about the repercussions of this scene. What was she going to do?

"See, she can't help but stare at me," James' voice pulled her out of her reverie, "Admit it, you want me, don't you?" Hermione shook her head in horror as she brushed off their hands so that she could stand without their help. Then a sentence suddenly took the leading presence in her mind, '_This rune is relatively new having only come about in 1976._' No, surely not. Or was it?

"What year is it?" Hermione asked shakily. She clasped her hands together tightly pleading with a higher power that it hadn't happened.

"I think she hit her head when you dropped her, Sirius," James laughed while pushing his glasses back up his nose. She felt a growl escape her throat in frustration at James' arrogance.

"Please, just tell me what year it is," she pleaded, looking more at Sirius than James.

"1976, why?" Sirius told her politely. Hermione froze; how did it happen? And without a Timeturner as well. How was she going to get back? "Hel-loooo?" Sirius waved his hand in front of Hermione's face. "You may be right, James, we should get her to Madam Pomfrey."

"No!" Hermione snapped. She was trying desperately to keep herself calm but failing miserably. Her thoughts were so random and scattered that she couldn't pick out a full sentence anymore. "Dumbledore!"

"Is coming down the hallway now," James told her with yet another wink while pointing to something behind her. She spun round to find Dumbledore walking towards them, she felt relief flood through her as she noticed that he had less wrinkles than she remembered and a shorter beard.

"Good evening, Mr Potter, Mr Black and…" he paused as his gaze settled on Hermione, "Hmmmm, I see we have a problem here." Hermione nodded numbly hoping that she didn't have to say anything she shouldn't in front of James and Sirius. "Would you mind coming to my office please?" He didn't wait for an answer as he smiled and continued down the hallway. The two young men and Hermione silently followed him until they reached the stone gargoyle.

"Would you two please wait here a moment, I won't keep your new friend for long," he chuckled at them before giving the password to the gargoyle.

"But, sir," Sirius started as the gargoyle sprung to life, "we think she might have hurt her head, she couldn't remember what year it was." Hermione whimpered while Dumbledore simply looked at Sirius. She caught James eyeing her up when Dumbledore started to lead the way up the stairs to his office. Ignoring James' gaze, she followed the Headmaster up the stairs to his office in silence, her palms sweaty.

Once in Dumbeldore's office Hermione took a seat while Dumbledore conjured up a pot of tea with two teacups before sitting down in his seat opposite Hermione. He sat back in his chair and stared at Hermione like he was looking deep into her soul. It took all her effort not to look away or blink.

"I can't say that I have ever not known a students name," he spoke more to himself than to Hermione, "So why do I not know it?" His eyes twinkled like he was telling her a joke and was just bursting to tell her the punch line.

"I-I'm from the future, sir," she whispered, all she could think about was the effect this would have on her time. Dumbledore nodded as though everything in the world now made sense to him.

"Timeturner?" he asked, she shook her head. "Has a spell been invented?" She shook her head once more. "It is most intriguing that you are here." He smiled at her causing a feeling of calm to rush over her.

"I don't know how it happened, sir," there was a pause before she asked the question she wasn't sure she wanted the answer to, "Will I be able to go back?"

"That all depends on how you got here, I'm afraid. I also believe we have said enough on the matter of how you came to be here." Hermione's heart was beating rapidly at the thought of never being able to go back to her time. "But I will personally see to getting you back to your time." She nodded and took a shaky breath, how could this have happened?

"What do I do while a way back is found?" She forced herself to be calm, not panic while Dumbledore mulled over the question. She patiently waited for his answer while objects in his room emitted strange noises here and there, and the paintings whispered to each other about the latest gossip.

"I believe it may be best if you continue with your schooling but under a different name," she nodded obediently to his plan, "It may have been best if you'd stayed hidden but with Mr Black and Mr Potter meeting you then naturally it will be big news around the school." He smiled knowingly and Hermione could well imagine the things James and Sirius had done in school. "Try not to bring attention to yourself. If students ask questions and they will, then simply tell them you are a relative of mine. Nothing more and nothing less, should any rumours happen……we'll just let them happen." Dumbledore eyes were practically dancing at the thought of what students would conjure up in their imaginations.

Nearly half an hour was spent discussing the details of Hermione's lessons and sleeping arrangements. She questioned the small matter of clothes and books but Dumbledore would only tell her that it would be taken care of. She was just thankful her wand had been on her person the whole time. Once they were finished they went back downstairs to a bickering James and Sirius.

"Prongs, we've done that one, they'll have their backs up waiting for us to do it again," Sirius urged as he lazily leant against the wall by the gargoyle with his hands in his pockets. "We've got to- hi!" He stood up straight when he saw the gargoyle move to reveal Hermione and Dumbledore. James quickly got up from the floor and made a beeline for Hermione.

"Shall we take her to the hospital wing, sir?" He moved to put his arm round her but she growled at him before he could even raise his hand.

"That won't be necessary but could you please take Miss Roper to Gryffindor tower and ask one of the seventh year girls to show her to her room. You have a new house mate." Dumbledore gave Hermione a quick smile before he began to walk down the corridor mumbling his excuses. James and Sirius watched him walk away and go around the corner before turning back to Hermione.

"So…._Miss_ Roper," James winked as he scuffled up next to her, "You have-"

"Do you have something in your eye?" Hermione asked, knowing full well that he didn't. James frowned at the question.

"No, I-"

"Then why do you keep winking?" she demanded more than asked.

"Oh yes, James, you should definitely write a book about how to capture the hearts of women," Sirius joked. He stepped over to Hermione and stuck his hand out. "Sirius Black at your service." She glanced down at his hand as she slowly took it; it was taking all her will power not to hug him. Everyone missed Sirius and a tiny part of her was ecstatic that she was in the past.

"Hermione Roper," she told him, her new name not feeling right with her, but it had been her mother's maiden name and the only one she could think of using. Sirius smirked as he pulled his hand away and pointed roughly at James.

"This one here is James Potter, apparent lady-charmer and self-claimed High Master of Hogwarts." James grinned and puffed his chest out while Hermione merely rolled her eyes. She was just thankful that she knew his future and that it was a passing phase for him. "Come on, I'll take you to the common room." She nodded before following Sirius down the corridor as James once more tried his luck at putting his arm round her.

"So why haven't I seen you before if you've been here the whole time?" James asked, ignoring the fact that Hermione had just given him a dead arm. Hermione inwardly cursed herself as she remembered what she'd said.

"Because I've been avoiding you," she told him when she got his arm twitching towards her. Having had enough, she pulled Sirius back and made him walk between them.

"You aren't new?" Sirius asked having not been there when James met her he had no idea how they'd greeted one another.

"Of course I'm new, I just……forgot where I was," Hermione lied, it had never come easy to her, just thinking on her feet like that. Both James and Sirius eyed her up in confusion.

"Where you from?" James asked as they came to the stairs and started walking up them.

"Here and there." She smiled while memories of Luna's vague answers swam through her mind.

"Very funny," James pouted.

"Not related to Evans are you?" Sirius smirked causing James to scowl at him.

"Who?" Hermione questioned.

"No one!" James snapped before Sirius could answer.

Hermione felt like she'd answered hundreds of questions about herself once they'd reached the portrait she knew very well; the Fat Lady. And all questions were answered more vaguely than the last one. She would have loved nothing more than to tell them the truth but being a stickler for rules, she knew she would never do anything that would change the future, no matter how much she wanted to.

"Giggling Goblins," James told the Fat Lady. The painting swung open as she muttered something about them being annoying. Hermione nervously followed the two young men into the Gryffindor common room, a place she knew inside and out, but would no longer know the people in it.

She took the scene all in as random students were sat here and there; nothing was different, not even the rug that was threadbare in spots. She watched as James and Sirius made their way over to a red headed girl sat in a chair by the fireplace. Hermione recognised her from all the photos Harry had shown her, it was Lily Potter, only she wasn't Potter just yet.

Hermione continued to watch a banter that was going on between James and Lily before Lily eventually looked towards where Hermione was stood. She quickly got up and greeted her with a warm smile. There were the eyes that everyone told Harry he had.

"Hi, I'm Lily Evans, I'm the Head Girl," she introduced herself as she reached Hermione.

"Hermione Gra- Roper," she quickly corrected herself. That was going to take some time to get used to.

"Come on, I'll take you up to the girls' room," she instructed before leading the way. Hermione eagerly followed her and deeply wishing Harry could have this moment with her. They went up the stairs that Hermione had taken so many times, but this time they didn't go to the door that she'd used for over six years, the one she went through was a little further up the stairs. "Look at that, there's already an extra bed."

Hermione spotted a trunk at the end of the bed with the initials HR on it. She felt a little relieved but amazed Dumbledore had sent stuff to her so quickly. "We've never had a new student that wasn't a first year before," Lily spoke up as she went to her own bed, flung open her trunk and began searching through it.

"It was a sudden change really," Hermione told her but not really listening as she walked over to her own trunk, she was curious to see what was in it. She pulled the lid up and spotted her timetable sitting neatly on top of some clothes.

"That'll be nice, you're in all my lessons," Lily cooed while peering over Hermione's shoulder. She jumped at not realising she had gotten so close. "Where you from?"

"I can't really say," Hermione spoke without thinking, she was too busy rifling through the clothes. There was another set of school robes and some clothes that she couldn't believe she would have to wear. At the bottom were her school books, some more tattered than others, and a note from Dumbledore. He apologised that everything was second hand but was sure she understood.

"Why can't you say?" Lily questioned eagerly as she sat on Hermione's bed. Hermione blinked trying to force her focus back to Lily. She got up from the floor and sat on the bed next to her. She took a moment to think about it as the words from Dumbledore floated through her mind about not telling people anything other than she was related to him.

"It's a little painful to talk about." She instantly felt awful about the lie; it wasn't her nature to lie like this. "I just can't talk about it." Lily nodded in sympathy and patted her arm gently.

"You can always come to me if you need to talk," Lily offered to her. Hermione nodded and watched Lily stand up and tell her that she would be reading downstairs if she needed her. Hermione waited until Lily had closed the door before she lay back on the bed. She felt lost, lonely and very homesick, and wasn't entirely too sure if she could pretend to be someone else. And what if they never found a way back to the future for her? What would she do then?


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer:** Still the same as before, it's JK's.

**A/N: **I must apologise, I promised a reviewer that I would have this up before Christmas and here we are at the end of January. I'm usually a stickler for keeping promises and I'm ashamed to say I didn't keep it. I had it written and everything, I just didn't like it much. So now I've stopped picking and I'm putting it up. My two glorious betas **Peanuts107** and **Tezgm** looked it over and said it fits in with the story. So now I'm handing it over to you all to read. Please please please tell me if something doesn't make sense to you or if something doesn't fit. It's not an exciting chapter, but I had to get these characters in before I could continue. Hope you all enjoy.

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**Chapter Three**

A small stream of sunlight had managed to find its way through a gap in the hangings surrounding the bed that Hermione was sleeping in. Stretching lazily a flurry of activity went through her mind as she remembered the previous day. A dread started to weigh heavily on her stomach while she lay and thought how she was going to get through the day.

She heard the other girls start to wake up and go about their morning rituals while calling out requests to one another for things to be passed to them. "Can I borrow your brush, mine's gone walk-about again," one girl called to another. Pushing her dread to one side, she forced herself to get up and pushing the hangings open. Lily looked up instantly and smiled before getting everyone's attention.

"Girls, this is Hermione Roper," Lily introduced cheerily as all the girls peered at Hermione with intrigue. Hermione waved nervously while Lily continued. "She got here last night and don't bombard her with questions. Now," she smiled reassuringly at Hermione before pointing to a tall dark haired girl with freckles dotted across her nose, "This is Anna."

"Hi," Anna cooed sweetly.

"This is Jaslyn." A blonde girl with dazzling blue eyes and a tiny frame scowled. Lily laughed at her face. "Jaslyn doesn't like her full name. She prefers to be called Jazz."

"My mother couldn't decide between Jasmine and Lyn so this is what I got," she pouted but her eyes continued to dance.

"Then we have Rajni." A small Asian girl smiled shyly as she flicked her plaited waist length hair over her shoulder. "And last but not least, Freya." A plump brown haired girl with laughing green eyes waved a little too enthusiastically.

"Hi," Hermione barely whispered, hoping against hope that they weren't going to ask too many questions. "It's nice to meet you all." But it seemed Lily had read her mind.

"Right, we've got plenty of time to ask Hermione all about her, but right now, I'm looking to have my breakfast before _Potter_," she spat the name with such venom. The girls laughed before dispersing to continue getting dressed. Lily winked at Hermione before moving away.

Half an hour later Hermione was dressed and not amused. She wasn't vain, truly she wasn't, but even she was ashamed to be going downstairs in the clothes that had been given to her. The blouse, she was sure, had been a patchwork quilt once and the jeans…..there was a stain just above the knee that refused to come out. And this was the best outfit from everything that was given to her.

"At least I have something to wear," she muttered to herself. A gasp from across the room suddenly stopped her from moving away from her bed.

"What on earth are you wearing?" Jazz demanded and reached Hermione in three long strides. Hermione blushed deeply as she nervously fingered the loose thread at the bottom her top. All the girls stopped to look.

"I, erm, had to leave, erm, unexpectedly and this was…er…all Professor Dumbledore could find for me." Hermione cursed herself inwardly but at least it wasn't a lie. Jazz circled her like a lion would its prey while the other girls came to look.

"Luckily it's Hogsmeade tomorrow," Jazz clucked as she lifted Hermione's right arm up and then dropped it. "We'll have to take you to Old Maud."

"I don't have the money….but thank you anyway," Hermione said politely as she tried to sidestep Jazz.

"Oh no…I don't think so, I'm not having a friend of ours looking like _that_. Everyone, trunks open!" Jazz instructed as the girls all raced to open their trunks for her inspection. Hermione looked to Lily for an explanation.

"Jazz is a fashion fiend…you'll see," Lily whispered to her quickly before Jazz came back from her own trunk carrying some items of clothing over her arm. Hermione watched puzzled as she came to stop in front of Rajni her trunk.

"Rajni, what is your offering?" she demanded of her with her left arm held out.

"Pants I never wear," a pair of dark cream pants went over Jazz's arm, "And a lovely sash, I already have two of this one." The sash went over the arm and the blonde moved on to Freya and her trunk.

"What do you have, oh Freya?"

"Two t-shirts and two skirts, they…er…don't fit anymore," Freya blushed as she placed the clothing over Jazz's arm. Jazz smiled sweetly at Freya before coming to halt in front of Anna.

"Anna, queen of the jeans, give me something," Jazz chanted dramatically.

"Jeans, skirt, three shirts and a jumper," Anna threw them over her arm and just when she was about to move, Anna stopped her. "_And _some underwear, I dread to think what you were given." Hermione went bright red having seen the underwear that had been given to her.

Jazz chuckled and came to the last girl, Lily. "Come on, Red, give it to me."

"A jacket, pair of jeans and a blouse." Lily threw the clothes over Jazz's weighed down arm and all the girls proceeded to gather round Hermione's bed.

Hermione looked at the clothes being placed onto her bed and became overwhelmed. "I really can't accept this, it's too much," she protested as Jazz picked out an outfit from the pile.

"Nonsense," Lily spoke sweetly as she held up a skirt from Anna against her. "Besides, if you wear something that looks as though it is remotely out of fashion then you'll never sleep in this room again." Hermione laughed wiping away the tears at how kind they were being to her.

"I'm not laughing," Jazz teased as she handed her an outfit she was to wear that day. "And tomorrow I'll get you a new pair of shoes….or two because I've no idea where you got those but they haven't been in fashion and never will be." Hermione looked down at the shoes that had come from the future with her, she laughed as she realised she was probably right, but didn't really care.

"But there's a condition on this," Anna spoke with a sly smile on her face. Hermione nodded. "We get to ask one question each about you." She froze at the thought. "It's only natural that we want to know about you. You've come from literally nowhere and we've never had someone join us later in the school year." Hermione mulled it all over and eventually nodded. It was the least she could do after the kindness they were showing her, she'd never been accepted into a group so quickly before. It had taken Harry and Ron a couple of months before they did.

"What school did you go to?" Rajni asked first while fiddling with the end of her plait.

"One exactly like this," Hermione spoke vaguely.

"And?" Rajni demanded.

"And it's not much different," Hermione teased. Rajni eyed her up before smiling widely at her.

"You're good, I like you very much."

"My turn," Anna spoke up, "Why did you leave so quickly?"

"I don't know, it wasn't a decision I had a choice in," Hermione answered honestly. This wasn't as bad as she thought it would be.

"What about your family?" Jazz asked her question then cursed herself for using her question up when she wanted to ask something else.

"They don't know I'm here. They're Muggles and magic always confuses them." Hermione felt a pang in her heart at the thought of what her parents were doing in this time. She quickly did the maths and realised that they were probably about to meet if they already hadn't.

"Why are you being so vague in your answers," Freya asked with an innocent face but her voice held suspicion. Hermione sighed as she sat on the bed.

"I'd be suspicious too if I were you but I can't say much. It's a very confusing story that I'm still trying to work out myself. All I know is that I've left my two best friends, my family and life behind and I don't know if I can go back." Hermione bit her lip not wanting to cry. There was a silence while the girls watched her compose herself and then Lily asked her question.

"How did your parents react when they found out you were a witch?" Lily asked eagerly. "Mine were a little shocked but are now really proud of me. Not so much my sister, she hates it and calls me a freak." Lily frowned as she spoke about her sister, it was almost as if she wanted her sister's respect and couldn't understand why she disliked her so much.

"Oh they weren't sure what to do. They thought someone was playing a practical joke on them. Then the man from the Ministry turned up to explain and they've been fine with it." Hermione smiled as she remembered the man dressed in robes that she hadn't seen before and doing magic for her parents. She was thrilled at the thought of going to a school to learn magic.

"You do realise that Potter will be at breakfast now, Lily," Rajni pointed out to her. Lily scowled and cursed as she stormed out of the room. "He's nothing but a show off that James Potter….Sirius Black too. Try and keep away from them," she advised Hermione before grabbing her book-bag and leaving.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

Hermione nervously made her way downstairs to the common room, hoping that she could just glide out without anyone noticing her. She was intending to skip breakfast and just go straight to her first lesson; Potions. The girls had been so nice to her but she doubted that she would get the same treatment off everyone. They were bound to just ask her very awkward questions about where she had come from and she wasn't ready. She needed to think of some general answers that would suffice most questions.

Just as she rounded the corner of the corridor to walk down the stairs Hermione walked straight into someone and was instantly knocked down flat on her bottom. "Does no one watch where they're walking in this school? Honestly, is it too much to ask?" a familiar cold voice spoke and Hermione couldn't place it, but then she looked up to find a face she knew very well. Her eyes held his firmly as he stared down at her.

"Fresh blood?" Lucius Malfoy stated rather than asked. This Lucius wasn't as old as she remembered and his hair was barely past his shoulders. "Are you going to sit there all day?" Hermione scowled at him before standing up. "Tell me, what's the scowl for? How've I come to displease you?" She eyed him wearily while he tapped his foot impatiently.

"Like you care," Hermione hissed as she dusted herself up and picked up her bag.

"I see not all of us are raised with manners," he spoke with disdain with his arms firmly crossed on his chest. "But I will tell you this; you'll do well not to make an enemy of me and it isn't very often I hand out an offer of friendship." Hermione frowned before looking round to see if she was having some kind of prank pulled on her.

"Why would _you_ want to be friends with me?" she asked and then almost slapped herself silly. What was she doing? He didn't know what he'll do in the future. Granted he's probably on his merry way to being the Lucius she knew, but he wasn't there yet.

Lucius walked round her once before stopping and looking her up and down. "I like you, you've got attitude. Could be a silly thing to have, but not many can walk away having to spoken to me like that." He suddenly held a hand out to her. "Lucius Malfoy at your service." Hermione glanced at it before nervously placing her own in it. It was going against her grain, but she couldn't afford to raise any hairs here.

"Hermione Gr….Roper." She shook his hand firmly just as a shout could be heard from down the corridor. There was no way on this earth that Hermione was going to get to Potions inconspicuously and she resigned herself to lying should she be quizzed.

She groaned when she saw James bounding towards her with a sandy haired boy in tow. "Malfoy, I hope you're playing nice," James teased with an arm being flung round Hermione's shoulders.

"I'm always nice, Potter," Lucius told him with feigned innocence before swaggering down the corridor. Hermione quickly shrugged off James' arm and proceeded to walk down the stairs without so much as a hello to James and his friend.

"See, Remus, she wants me, it's all in her eyes." Hermione faltered a little and nearly missed her step when she heard the name Remus. She bit her lip and continued to walk down the stairs and fought not turn to look at the boy who would become a teacher to her and a good friend. "Hermione, wait!" She stopped on the bottom step and waited for them.

"James, I don't want you, really I don't, so please stop now before I'm forced to hurt you," Hermione told him sweetly as she turned to face the two young men. She turned to find James about to put his arm round her again and Remus smiling cheekily. She wished with all her heart she could avoid meeting him, she dread to think the damage she was doing to her future.

"Yes, James, your amazing charm and wit wins you over with the ladies again," Remus teased before holding out a hand to Hermione. "Remus Lupin, sadly friend to this weirdo." He nodded in the direction of a confused looking James.

"Hermione," she replied as she shook his hand. An awkward silence descended upon them as Hermione nervously looked between the two boys. James went to say something as his arm started to inch up again. "Trust me when I say I will hurt you," he pulled a face not understanding why she was refusing him so when quite clearly she was falling for him, "James, you don't want me, you never will. Besides-" she caught herself about to mention Harry and couldn't believe how careless she was being.

"Besides what?" James questioned with curiosity while Remus watched with intrigue.

"I have my N.E.W.T.s to concentrate on," she mumbled before walking away that could almost be mistaken for running away. She heard him shout that they were only at the beginning of February as she silently promised herself that she was going to keep silent even if it killed her. No answering questions in class and drawing attention to herself. No interacting with people, especially ones that she knew in the future. And what's more, she was going to avoid James Potter at all cost. If she continued to let his silliness carry on it could stop her best friend ever existing.

James and Remus watched her disappear confused by her behaviour. "I just knew there was a female version of you around, Moony," James teased. Remus faked a laugh before walking off. "Only she's better looking."


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: **The only thing I own related to HP are the books. That's it, the rest all belong to the glorious one.

**A/N:** Well, I'm a couple of days late on when I wanted this up, but at least I've been quicker this time. I hope you all like this update, I just hope it fits with what's happened. Thanks again to all the reviews, you're the best. Enjoy. Oh and a big fat thanks to **Tezgm** for going through this chapter with me.** Peanuts107** you're still my best gal, but I didn't want to bother you with you having your new job and everything.

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**Chapter Four**

Hermione breathed a sigh of relief as the last lesson came to a close with no incident. Potions had been a bit dodgy when she saw Professor Slughorn in the classroom, but she managed to keep her head down and not draw attention to herself; a first for her. She had a few moments in Transfiguration when no one knew the answer and it was quite glaringly obvious. It took all her energy to keep her hand down but then James came along and lazily gave the answer.

So with Arithmancy over, Hermione listened intently to Lily and Freya's conversation as they went down to dinner. She had skipped breakfast and lunch to avoid questions, but she felt her prepared answers would do as her stomach was not going to allow her to miss another meal.

"Honestly, Lily, the boy is arrogant and thinks he owns the place. I don't blame you one bit for hating him so much," Freya told her as they reached the Grand Staircase.

"I'll miss the school when we leave but Potter has been the bane of my existence for the past two years and I can't wait to be shut of him." Lily was shoving her books into her bag with such force she was going to rip it. Hermione was stunned; Harry was four years off being born, what had possessed Lily to marry James if she disliked him so?

The conversation remained the same and even bordered on who hated James Potter more. It almost became a competition when they met Anna at the bottom of the stairs and went in to the Great Hall. And then they saw him sat with Sirius, Remus and another boy at the Gryffindor table and it soon turned to scorn towards Remus and the other boy, called Peter, (this turned Hermione's blood cold) for being so stupid as to be friends with the likes of Potter and Black.

"What have they done for you to hate them so much?" Hermione inquired innocently once they were sat down with Jazz and Rajni and began loading their plates up. No one would answer and she looked from girl to girl expectantly. "It can't be that bad."

"Basically they pulled a prank on Lily a little over two years ago and it went wrong. But they refuse to apologise and keep on harping on about it," Rajni eventually told Hermione.

"It's not just that. They keep on trying to provoke the Slytherins for no reason and poor Snape is the main victim in it all." Lily sighed as she picked at her mashed potatoes. "I mean, I know the Slytherins aren't the nicest of people and do cause trouble, but them two are always dragging others into the pranks." Hermione listened carefully, hoping to hear more about Snape. Harry had told her about his worst memory but she had thought it might have been a one-off incident.

However, it wasn't to be. The girls ate their dinner in silence while flicking through books in preparation for the upcoming N.E.W.Ts and no more was discussed about Snape. Hermione ate her dinner quickly as the Great Hall filled to the brim with students. A couple of boys from the year below came over to inquire as to who she was with some nearby Gryffindors listening but Lily came to the rescue and told them all to go away while she had her dinner.

With dinner barely settling in her stomach Hermione quickly said her 'See you later's' to the girls as she saw the boys inching back to ask questions. She waved at them with a smile and made her way to the library to study in peace. She made it all the way up the first flight of stairs when she heard her name being called. "ROPER!" She slowly turned round, the sound of her new name still sounding foreign to her.

"You never told me you were a…_Gryffindor_." Lucius Malfoy barely managed to get the last word out as if it was poison just saying it. She waited patiently for him to reach her at the top of the flight of stairs with two young men following her. One she just knew was Snape, his greasy hair hadn't changed one bit. She would even go as far to say that it looked like the exact same hair she knew in her time and that it had never grown or been cut; only it was on a young face.

"You never asked if I was in Gryffindor," she stated once he was stood before her. The other young man stood with Snape and Malfoy, who had light brown hair and shifty blue eyes, sniggered at Hermione's comment.

"As a Slytherin I cannot be seen consorting with a Gryffindor. If you had been in Ravenclaw then our friendship would just suffice to be respectable, but I shall have to take my offer back." This was no skin off Hermione's nose, she knew what he was to become, but she couldn't help feeling a little annoyed.

"I see you may have manners, but it hasn't taken away any pettiness you have. I can't believe you're so childish as to hold a grudge over me like that," she snapped at him. She quickly bit her tongue to stop herself going on and revealing she knew his views on 'tainted' blood.

Lucius was stunned, it would seem the more rude she was to him the more he respected her. He looked around, glanced at his Slytherin companions and stepped close to her so that only she was able to hear him speak. "Speak of this to no one and I'll make sure that no harm comes to you." Hermione frowned at the offer, not sure what he meant, but none the less, she shook his hand on the deal. "You two say anything and you won't live to see tomorrow," he threatened Snape and the boy who seemed to snigger a lot.

Hermione spun on her heel and continued to the library just knowing that he was going to find out eventually she was a Muggle born. She'd already mentioned it to the girls and they would probably let slip to someone who'd ask them questions about her.

Once in the safe haven of the library she breathed a sigh of relief; peace and quiet at last. She found a corner hidden away from the few students in there and set about her homework before studying for the exams. It wasn't until Hermione sat down and was pulling out her books, parchment, quill and ink out that something dawned on her; the future she was growing up in had changed. All these people that she was meeting that she knew in her time were surely going to remember her face? Her surname may be different but they would put two and two together, especially Sirius and Remus.

Not knowing why, she began writing down all the significant things that had happened in her life. She wrote down the names of the people she had met here that knew her in the future, how she came to meet these people, and she wrote memories that included them. When finished, Hermione scanned over it before folding it neatly, placed a charm on it to keep everything hidden from prying eyes and hid it in a pocket at the bottom of her bag.

Unbeknownst to Hermione things were beginning to shift in time, just little things were changing and became different to how she remembered them. But they would soon become big things just from little gestures off Hermione; almost like a ripple effect. A friendly smile was going to have amazing consequences.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

A couple of weeks later, Hermione was on her way to Professor Dumbledore's office. Having barely spoken to him since she'd arrived in this time she was getting a bit worried about what was being done to send her back. The longer she was here, the more she changed the future.

In that short time James had asked her out no less than forty-three times, Jazz inspected her every morning to check her second-hand clothes were acceptable and a girl from the fourth year, Michelle, was a great companion to discuss books with (which had been discovered as they both reached for the same book in the library). All in all, she seemed to be keeping herself out of trouble and not drawing attention to herself.

The strangest thing was happening though. Every evening when she would depart for the library Lucius Malfoy was always found loitering round. "As prefect I have to loiter at this time of the evening," he had protested after the third night. He would walk down to the library with her and say goodbye before going off on the rest of his patrol.

So, there Hermione was, stood by the gargoyle and not knowing the password. She looked up and down the corridor for life but not even a ghost was gliding past. She sighed as she decided it would have to wait until tomorrow. Or maybe she could just get a letter to him tonight.

Lost in her own thoughts while making her way back down the corridor Hermione hadn't been aware of the arguing voices until she was right at the end and the owners were just round the corner. "Leave me alone!" a male's voice shouted. "Or you'll live to regret it!"

"And what you gonna do, Snape? Hex me with one of the many curses you know? Go on, I _dare_ you!" the voice Hermione knew to be James' spat back. She scowled in annoyance. "You're nothing but scum!" That was it, she'd heard enough. She stepped out to find James Potter and Severus Snape squaring up to each other.

"Leave him alone, James!" she snapped with her arms firmly placed on her hips. James looked shocked for a second at seeing someone else there.

"I don't need _you_ sticking up for me!" Severus snapped at her as James stepped back from him.

"Hermione, he deserves everything he gets," James pouted at being interrupted and by the new love of his life no less.

"Why does he?" she demanded impatiently.

"Shut up! I don't need your help," Severus growled. Hermione threw a dangerous look at him before rounding back to James. He tried to stutter his excuses and Severus smirked at how he couldn't think of anything to say. "He does it because he can." Both Hermione and James looked at Severus when he finally spoke up. "Admit it…go on…you do it because it's all about power and glory for you. Well one of these days it'll come back to haunt you." He stormed off leaving those words to haunt Hermione instead.

It took a minute or two before Hermione noticed James was talking to her, trying to get her attention. She blinked in a daze as she thought about how Severus was probably already a Death Eater and that he was more than likely finding every way possible to get back at James. "Hermione, you've gone pale, are you okay?" James asked in a sincerity she had never heard from him before.

"I'm fine." She forced a smile as she let him guide her towards the Grand Staircase. "Why do you do it, James?" she asked gently as they walked up the first set of stairs.

"Because he's strange and knows more curses and hexes than most of us put together. He's dangerous and I'll bet my life on it that he'll kill someone before he's twenty." Hermione didn't respond to his answer, she didn't know how to. They continued the walk up to the tower in silence and were greeted by Lily as they reached the Gryffindor entrance.

"We've got to patrol, Potter, and check on the other prefects," she told him coldly before smiling at Hermione. "Could you do me a favour?" Hermione nodded. "Peter's having a bit of trouble with his Transfiguration homework, I was wondering if you could give him a nudge in the right direction? It's just I saw that you got full marks on your last piece of homework and he could really use with the help." She wasn't thrilled, but as 'He's done nothing wrong yet!' kept running through her head she gave a tight-lipped yes. "Potter!" Lily gave him a sharp punch to the arm. "Let's go!" And she was off before James could register what was happening.

Hermione took a deep breath before entering the Gryffindor common room. She saw Peter sat in the corner with Sirius who was staring into space. She forced herself to go over to him not wanting to let Lily down. "Peter?" her voice barely audible when she spoke. His head shot up in surprise and Sirius gazed at Hermione too. "Lily told me you needed some help on your homework."

"It's okay," he squeaked, "Sirius gave me the answers." A swift kick was given to Peter under the table.

"And how is it meant to sink in if you just get the answers?" she found herself scolding him as she would have done with Harry and Ron. "It's no good having the correct answer, you need to know the path that leads you to the right answer or you won't learn anything." Sirius mumbled something with 'slow' being a distinct word.

"I'm no good at Transfiguration anyway. I can never seem to learn anything," Peter moaned.

"Well you won't if you get Sirius to give you the answers," Sirius laughed mockingly at Peter which caused Hermione to round on him. "And you should help your friend properly." Sirius stopped laughing when Hermione sat down at the small table with them.

"I do help him," Sirius protested, "Don't I, Peter?" Peter nodded dutifully.

"Giving him the answers is _not_ helping. What happens if McGonagall asks you to explain the answer?" There was no response as Peter looked down at the table in shame while Sirius held a cocky smirk. "Don't know what you're smirking for, I saw the state of your apparent teacup."

"And what was wrong with it?" Sirius asked haughtily.

"Nothing if tweeting is normal from a teacup," Hermione teased before turning back to Peter. "Let me see your homework." Peter reluctantly got out his homework again and ashamedly handed it to Hermione.

"It's bad enough with Evans, but you as well," Sirius whined as he sat back in his chair to watch Hermione help Peter. While she was helping Peter get through the questions she slowly warmed to him, but his betrayal was constantly niggling at her too. It was an action that no one had ever known the reason for. Either way, the future had to run its course and there was nothing she could do about it.

"Thank you," Peter said shyly once they were finished. Hermione smiled sweetly at him as she handed his textbook to him. As he took the textbook off her a sharp pain shot through her head and stopped. She took a sharp intake of breath as she pushed the heel of her palm into her forehead.

"What is it?" Sirius asked sitting up. She waited for the effects of the pain to leave her before looking up again. Something was happening to her, she didn't know what, but something was not quite right. "Roper?"

"Just a pain in my head," she finally told him. Peter hurriedly suggested seeing the school nurse but Hermione refused. "I'll be fine. I think it's tiredness." They seemed to accept her reason for it and took to chatting quietly as Hermione left them to go to the girls' dormitory. She knew it wasn't tiredness but she knew exactly what it was and didn't know how it had happened. First thing in the morning she was going to have to go straight to Dumbledore and tell him. She couldn't risk it happening again.


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer:** None of it's mine.

**A/N:** Thanks everyone for reviewing, it's great. This chapter, I'm ashamed to say, hasn't been handed over to my beta to be pulled apart and grammar corrected. So if things don't seem to match up or my grammar/spelling isn't up to par, then please let me know. Sorry it's late, again. I had hoped it to be up on Tuesday, but life wouldn't allow me to sit down with it and work on it. Besides, I wouldn't be me if I wasn't late for nearly everything. Hope you all enjoy and please review, they make me smile.

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**Chapter Five**

"I see," Dumbledore said quietly. Hermione had just spent the better part of half an hour relaying to him the events of the previous evening. She had gone to him straight after breakfast before he could even finish eating his toast. Luckily he had politely put the toast down and led her to his office. "And what time did this happen?"

"About half past eight I think," she told him uncertainly. He nodded in understanding. Hermione frowned at what he could possibly understand about the situation. Dumbledore pulled a letter from his desk drawer and passed it over to Hermione. She stared at him for a moment awaiting an explanation.

"I paid a visit to the Unspeakables in the Ministry, are you aware of them?" Hermione nodded as the memory from the end of her fifth year floated to the front of her mind. "They will be the ones to help you back to your time." She looked down at the letter feeling slightly confused. "That letter is for you, I've been informed as to what is in it." She went to open it but was stopped. "Maybe you would prefer to read it by yourself." Hermione agreed and slowly got up to leave.

As she reached the door, Dumbledore called out to her, "Everything happens for a reason." Hermione turned back to find him smiling brightly at her. It made her feel a bit better about what had happened. She really hadn't meant to change the future, she wasn't even sure how she had done it, but she knew she had. Her memories told her she had.

As soon as the pain in Hermione's head had subsided the night before something was different with the way she remembered Peter. She couldn't be sure what it was, all she knew was that her reasoning for disliking him was unfounded.

Grateful that it was the weekend Hermione raced to the library to read the letter. Once there she tucked herself away into a dark corner with some random books she pulled off the shelves on her way to the table. She glanced around to check where the nearest people were before opening up the letter.

_Dear Hermione Jane Granger_, (Why didn't it surprise her they knew her real name?)

_On the 30th of March 1976 a folder landed on our desk, quite seemingly out of thin air, containing information about you. Less than twenty-four hours later, Professor Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts, paid us a visit to inform us of your arrival. _

_We know how you came to be here and we know how you are to go back, or more importantly, when. We know everything of importance that is to happen while you are here. Please do not be alarmed when you become aware of a change. We have a record of the events and change in your future that happened on the evening of 17th April 1976 at 8:36pm. You'll be pleased to know the transition went along smoothly._

_Everything and everyone has a plan mapped out for them, even without them knowing, but it would seem that a Harry James Potter, Draco Lucius Malfoy and Dean Michael Thomas have not been given the correct plans for their lives. We are to understand that these names mean something to you as we have no record or knowledge of them._

_Now, we have reason to believe that you have connections with these people and that you have been sent to us by a higher power, who you shall know more about soon. It has been stated in the folder you are a highly intelligent witch and do not act rashly, and thus being the 'Chosen One' to be here. All will become clear soon._

_Have faith and we will be in touch soon._

_The Unspeakables_

Hermione was stunned. She read the letter over three more times to make sure she had read it correctly. Her hands were shaking as she placed a charm on it before tucking it away into her back jeans pocket. She was _meant _to be here? But who? Why? She shook her head to rid herself of the questions. It was quite clear it wasn't time for her to know the answers, but she would when it was time to know.

"Revising usually helps if you've got the book open," a friendly voice told her. She looked up to find James staring down at her with a wide smile. She groaned inwardly, she wasn't in the mood for him right now. "You so want me!" He winked at her. She couldn't help but smile at the fact he was joking this time. "Any chance of me getting that date?" he asked as he sat down next to her.

"James, please stop asking me," Hermione half pleaded, half said to him. She looked to him and felt a sudden longing to see Harry and without thinking she hugged James tightly with tears in her eyes.

"Hey, what's this?" he questioned in surprise. She clung on to him for a little longer before letting go and looking at him through teary eyes. "What's the matter?" James' face was full of concern.

"I have this friend…well, I have two best friends where I'm from and I'm missing them terribly," she explained. She took a long look a James and it was like looking at Harry. "Have I told you that you looked like one of them?"

"I don't think you have, but there was that day we met and you called me…Harry, was it?" Hermione smiled "Why don't you write to them?" James suggested. Her lip wobbled at little wishing it was that simple, and wasn't sure how to answer him. "Tell you what, I've got something that'll cheer you up." Before she knew what was happening, he had her up on her feet and was dragging her out of the library.

Twenty minutes later Hermione found herself on the Quidditch pitch with Sirius, Remus, Peter and James circled round her. She turned slowly eyeing them up nervously. "I don't know, James," Peter squeaked. Hermione half smiled at him.

"Yeah, I have to agree with Peter on this one, she looks like she could be blown over by a slight wind," Sirius teased her with a wink. Hermione graced him with a scowl.

"I think she could do it," Remus spoke up thoughtfully.

"How exactly is this meant to cheer me up?" Hermione demanded.

"Hermione-whatever-you-middle-name-is-Roper, I bequeath to you, for one hour, my pride and joy, the apple of my eye, my Nimbus 1500." James proudly pushed a broomstick at her. Hermione took it in confusion and just stared at it. "I got it at Christmas and you'll not get a better broom." She glanced at him before gingerly passing it back.

"I don't like flying," she barely said feeling guilty that James had been trying to cheer her up and she was throwing it back in his face.

"What!" James exclaimed. How was it possible for anyone not to like flying? She hung her head in shame.

"Not like you to be wrong, Remus," Sirius laughed with a nudge to Remus' ribs.

"Shut up," Hermione growled at him, "I've had enough of you getting at me at every chance." Peter smirked at him.

"I wasn't- I didn't- sorry," Sirius mumbled.

"Forget him, how can you not like flying?" James demanded. Hermione opened her mouth to answer but James held his hand up. "I don't want to know." He took the broom off Hermione, flung his leg over and looked at her pointedly. "Get on." She glanced at him uncertainly feeling like he gave no room to argue, so she shakily climbed onto the broom with him.

"Hermione, you don't have to do it, you know?" Remus told her. She smiled at him but had resigned herself to showing James that it was true, she really didn't like flying, no matter who tried to change her mind.

She gripped her arms round his waist tightly and prepared herself and then they were off into the air. She felt that familiar lurch of fear start in her stomach. She closed her eyes tightly as the three young men on the ground became smaller. Then James did the worse thing he could, he did a loop and Hermione screamed so loudly, people on the other side of the castle thought someone was being murdered. "TAKE ME DOWN!" she demanded once they were righted.

Once on the ground, Hermione lay face down on the floor with her arms spread out. "I'm sorry, I thought you'd like it," James muttered while Sirius picked Hermione up.

"It's fine, really it is. But in future, when I say I don't like something, please just listen to me," Hermione warned him before thanking Sirius. "Now that you've all had your laugh at me, I'm going back to the library." And on that note, she started to walk off.

"Well, you two are doing a great job of being in her good books, aren't you?" she heard Remus say with a hint of a smile in his voice. She pulled a pained face as she continued to walk away. She would give anything to stop herself getting annoyed at Sirius and James, but they were so arrogant and arrogance she hated. Then it happened again, a pain right through her head, only this time it was so painful that she fell to her knees in shock.

Hermione was gripping the side of her head while waiting for it to subside, but this time, she saw a memory change. She watched it play over in her mind, moving backwards. She didn't feel the two pair of hands help her up to her feet, didn't hear them talk to her, all she could see was James saying hello to her. She was on Platform 9 ¾ and it was her first year. The memory stopped and then tucked itself back into her mind. When she finally realised that Sirius was now carrying her, she could still remember that James wasn't meant to be there when she was eleven years old.

"It'll be alright, Hermione," Peter soothed her gently as she noticed that she was hurriedly being carried back to the castle with Peter, Remus and James trailing behind them.

"Wait, wait," she protested to Sirius while trying to wriggle out of his arms. "I'm fine, please put me down."

"I don't think so, you didn't look fine," he glanced down at her, "and you still don't. You're as white as a sheet." She sighed before grabbing on to his neck so that she could fling her legs up and landed softly on her feet. "Hey!"

"Sorry, but I'm really truly fine. I've just been overdoing it on the revising and not getting enough sleep or eating properly." The four young men looked at her suspiciously.

"Think she's lying?" James whispered theatrically to Remus. Remus rubbed his chin thoughtfully while Peter walked over to her and began taking her pulse. She watched Peter with intrigue.

"Pulse is a little fast," Peter let go of her wrist and put a hand to her forehead, "temperature is normal," he looked into her eyes, "pupils are fine…my diagnosis…she's telling the truth." Hermione couldn't help but giggle at his silliness.

"I knew it was worth something you taking up Muggle Studies," James praised him causing the chubby boy to blush brightly.

"Fine, it's lunch time," Sirius grabbed her hand, "I'll make you eat if it's the last thing I do." And in a blur of walking very fast, she was suddenly walking into the Great Hall.

"Hey, Black, what you doing with Hermione, let go of her now," Lily called when she spotted them from the Gryffindor table. "I refuse to let you corrupt her with you childish going-ons. And, Hermione," she stood up as the group reached her, "lurking around with the enemy, I thought you had more sense."

"Hey, I resent that!" James snapped.

"Actually, Lily, they were looking after me. I wasn't feeling well, so I've been promptly dragged in to eat," Hermione explained to her before taking a seat. Lily eyed the boys up before they decided to sit down on the other side of Hermione.

Hermione watched as her plated was filled up for her by the four of them while Lily glared at them the whole time. The atmosphere got ridiculously tense when Anna and Jazz joined them. "It would seem _they_ have got plans to take our Hermione over to the dark side," Lily informed her two friends when they looked pointedly at the boys sitting so close to them.

"Oh get a sense of humour, will you?" James growled from the other side of Hermione. And in the blink of an eye, Hermione was sitting so far back while Lily and James squared up to each that she was in danger of falling off the bench.

"Who needs a sense of humour when we've got you to laugh at every stupid thing?" Lily growled at James.

"You need to have a sense of humour when we've got you to rain on our parade at every chance you get!" James retorted. That was it, Hermione was slipping and with a slight nudge off James she fell but didn't quite reach the floor. A pair of hands had hold of her under her arms and dragged her off the bench.

"Thank you," Hermione spoke gratefully, not looking at who had caught her but continued to look at James and Lily squabble.

"That makes us even," a cold voice spoke into her ear. Her eyes widened when she turned to see Severus Snape walking away and no one had noticed because all eyes were still on the bickering Gryffindors. She turned back to table and finally lost her temper.

"For crying out loud will you two just stop!" Hermione shouted causing a silence to fall on the Great Hall. She felt a blush creep into her cheeks as she felt many pairs of eyes turn to her. "You're about to leave school, going in to the adult world, but it seems you two need another seven years just to get out of childhood!" Lily and James hung their heads in shame. "There are bigger things happening than some stupid prank that went wrong." Hermione glared furiously only to have the worse pain of them all shoot through her head. She cried out in agony and felt herself falling then land with a harsh thud on the stone floor.

Memories scrambled round her mind correcting themselves as though they were playing before her very eyes. Her whole future was changing, just little things here and there. But the question was would it be for the better?


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: **I own many things. Too many things some might say. But I don't own Harry Potter or his cohorts.

**A/N: **So here it is. (Hopefully that's an 'at last' I hear you all say :-).) Anyway, after much kicking and screaming at FFN for the past few days, it finally let me upload my document. So blame FFN it wasn't here sooner ;-). This chapter isn't great. I have honestly been working at it for a couple of months, it just wouldn't work for me. I think I wrote seven different versions of this chapter, and this is what I think works for where I want to go. I hope it works for you all. Let me know your honest opinions of it. Big hugs and thanks for your patience if you're still with this story. Enjoy.

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**Chapter Six**

Hermione woke up in a room she'd never seen before. Cluttered was what sprung to mind when she sat up to look around. The bed she was lay on was tucked into a corner and about the only thing that didn't have papers or books scattered over it. There was a desk over on the far side with piles and piles of books, parchment and papers, all threatening to topple over. A door next to the desk had a window with dust on it so thick you could have grown a variety of vegetables in it. She blinked a couple of times, her eyes feeling dry and kicked the blanket off her. Why was she here?

The last thing Hermione could remember was James and Lily arguing about her…and Snape helping her when she fell off the bench. Memories were changing and then it was black. But what memories? Hermione flung her legs over the edge of the bed while searching the corners of her mind for what had changed in her past. She couldn't remember anything worth worrying over…yes there was. Her mouth slightly agape, she wildly searched the room as though it would give answers. James was alive in her time.

He was there saying hello to her on her first day boarding the Hogwarts Express. Ron and herself receiving gifts every Christmas off James. Gifts from Sirius too. In fact her last Christmas had been spent at Harry's home, Godric's Hollow, with Harry, Ron and James. It was then she remembered the recognition Hermione kept seeing in James' eyes, but when she would ask him about it, he would tell her she was being silly. He had known it was her in his past.

It was strange really, the memories. Hermione could remember what it was meant to be and she could also remember what it had become since her arrival in the past. The memories were running side by side with two differences; James was alive and Sirius never went to Azkaban. But that would mean the whole Peter incident wouldn't have taken place, but nothing had really changed about him from what she could remember. She liked a challenge, but this was ridiculous. Her head was hurting from trying to work it out.

"Ah, Miss Granger, you're awake," a male voice spoke from the door. Hermione looked up to find an elderly man entering the room dressed in positively ancient robes. His hair was short and grey but stuck up in odd angles, she was betting he couldn't tell her what a comb was. "I'm Benedict Waverly." He held his hand out to her as he crossed the small space between them. She gingerly took it and let him shake it firmly. He had a surprisingly strong grip for a fragile looking man.

"Where am I?" she asked uncertainly glancing round the room.

"Don't fret, dear, you're at the Ministry…the Unspeakables department to be exact." He took a seat at the end of the bed. "Professor Dumbledore sent you straight here after you fainted…just to check that it wasn't harming you." She was confused. "The memories that are…modifying," he explained.

"And is it?" she asked panicked. He shook his head.

"No, you're fine. It's a powerful thing that's happening to you, so we can't expect it to be plain sailing, can we?" Hermione let it sink in for a moment before speaking again.

"How long have I been here?" She twiddled nervously with the hem of her shirt.

"A little over seven hours. We've done all the tests we need to do, so I can Floo you back to Hogwarts now, if you're ready?" Hermione nodded.

"Can I ask you a question?" They got up and proceeded to the door.

"Ask away." He held the door open for her and they stepped out into a long corridor with a couple of doors here and there.

"Why can I remember the future I've come from _and_ the future I may be going back to?" Benedict led her through a door next to the room she'd just left.

"You need to remember what you're here for. If we let your memories just change and erase the ones they're replacing, then you might forget why you're here." Hermione understood a little as she was taken to one of the many fireplaces in the room. "I know this is a confusing time for you, but you're meant to be here. Just don't force anything to happen, let events take their course. Understood?" Hermione nodded. "If you have anymore questions I'm just an Owl away." Hermione smiled at the elderly man before taking a pinch of the proffered Floo powder and stepping into the fireplace.

"Hogwarts!" she yelled and instantly began the sickly travelling back to her school. She landed with an 'omph' in Dumbledore's office in a completely undignified pile on the floor.

"Miss Roper, how pleasant to see you back so soon," the headmaster greeted her coming round the desk to help her up. "How are you feeling?"

She wiped the soot off her clothes roughly before answering. "I'm confused by it all. I just wish things made more sense." She sighed in exasperation before moving to the exit. She turned back round. "What should I tell everyone when they ask questions?"

"I believe stretching the truth a little may be of assistance." He gave her a wink taking sitting back down behind his desk. Hermione nodded reluctantly and left. She had from Dumbledore's office to Gryffindor tower to come up with a story. She scowled; lying was not her strong point.

But instead of thinking of what she would say, all Hermione could think about was how much her own past had changed. In all the changes James Potter was there somehow. Harry's dad was alive in her time. But how? What had she done to change something so drastic? Did all this change the person Harry was to become? What about Lily?

Hermione growled in frustration as she arrived at the stairs. "Don't growl, it makes you sound like an animal," an icy voice drawled to her. She spun round to see Lucius Malfoy walking up the stairs below her.

"Hello, Lucius," she muttered before continuing up the stairs herself. She wasn't in the mood for him…or was she? She was there to change Draco's past too according to the Unspeakables. Maybe there's a reason for why she keeps finding him loitering round.

"And where have you been?" Lucius asked reaching her quickly.

"What do you mean?" She feigned innocence and avoided eye contact with him.

"That fainting episode you had, you weren't at the Hospital wing," he stated.

"I didn't need to go there, it was nothing." Hermione kept her head down and picked up her pace.

"So where were you?" Lucius persisted while keeping up with her.

"Around," she said vaguely. She was cursing herself for thinking that she could do this conversation with him. She just wanted to get back to her bed and hide in it until she could come up with a reasonable excuse for her absence without lying too much.

"Why are you being so vague?" Lucius asked suddenly becoming very serious. Hermione ignored his tone as she tried to think of something to say.

"There you are, Hermione! Where've you been?" Hermione looked up the stairs to find Lily coming down the stairs with James. "Malfoy!" Lily greeted him vehemently.

"Evans!" Malfoy replied icily before nodding his head at Hermione and disappearing back down the stairs.

"You're making a habit of hanging around with him," James pouted. Lily rolled her eyes at him before turning back to Hermione.

"Where've you been? I've been so worried." Lily pulled her up the couple of steps between them and the three of them proceeded up the stairs. "Are you okay? I feel so guilty. We were arguing and you just fainted. We didn't even notice until-"

"Lily!" James cut her off with a smile.

"Sorry," Lily said quietly. "So how are you?"

"I'm fine thanks." Hermione smiled at her, keeping her sight on the stairs as they walked up them. She felt uncomfortable at James' piercing gaze.

"What happened?" Lily questioned.

"Oh, erm, I haven't been sleeping very well." It was half true. Hermione had been lying awake until the early hours of the morning with thoughts going over and over in her mind. She just wanted to be in her own time.

"And that's why you fainted?" Lily asked. Hermione nodded without looking at her. "And that's it?" Hermione glanced at her; she wasn't convinced. "It's just we could barely get near you because Dumbledore had picked you up and practically raced out of the Great Hall." They came to a stop outside of the Gryffindor entrance. "And you weren't at the Hospital Wing." It was almost like Lily was accusing her of something. "Or at dinner."

"I…I…" Hermione fidgeted on the spot.

"Have you eaten?" James asked suddenly. Hermione looked to him confusion and shook her head. "I'll be right back." He spun on his heel and jogged back down the stairs.

"Hermione?" She reluctantly looked back to Lily. "What's wrong?" Hermione felt uncomfortable at Lily's piercing gaze. She felt like she was reading her thoughts. "Come on, Hermione, you can trust me."

"I know, it's just…I can't tell you." Hermione hung her head. It was taking all her willpower not to talk to Lily. She needed someone to talk to about this and she had no one.

"Why can't you tell me?" Lily gently tugged her to a corner, away from the entrance of the common room. "I don't usually push, but I'm going to on this." Hermione bit on her lip. Could she tell Lily? "You've come out of, seemingly, no where. You don't tell anyone about yourself. No one knows who you are. And you faint this afternoon, and James tells me it's happened before." Lily gripped her upper arms. "Whatever you're hiding…you can tell me."

Hermione shook her head. "No, I can't." Lily dropped her arms and sighed in frustration.

"_Why!_" Lily practically shouted.

"Because it could affect my future." Lily frowned. "And yours."

"What do you mean?" Hermione's horrified look at what she had just done stopped Lily from saying anymore. "You've said too much?" Hermione nodded. "Oh, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to be so pushy. You just look so sad these past few days…I just wanted to be here for you."

Hermione gave her a wobbly smile. "Thank you."

"What for?" Lily asked.

"For being caring…and not pushing anymore." Lily hugged her tightly before leading her back to the door. "I'd tell you if I could."

"I know."

They were just about to step into the common room entrance when Hermione felt, what was becoming a familiar, twinge. She braced herself, letting Lily go first, and the pain came and went before she could do anything. "Hermione?" She looked to Lily. "What's wrong?"

"N-nothing." Hermione forced a smile. Lily accepted her response reluctantly as Hermione followed her into the common room. A memory was bouncing round before her eyes. But how could that be? She couldn't possibly have caused it in such a brief conversation. Or had she?

"Hermione…hellooo." Hermione blinked as the waving hand in front of her face stopped. "There you are," Jazz teased. "How you feeling?"

"Hungry," Hermione answered with a small giggle when her stomach chose that moment to growl. And as if reading her thoughts, James was entering the common room with a plate full food.

"About time, Potter," Lily snapped. "The poor girl will have practically withered away if you'd been any longer." Lily snatched the plate off James and shoved it into Hermione's hands.

"Thank you," she told him gratefully.

James grinned cheekily and threw an arm round her shoulder. "Does it get me a date?" Hermione threw a death glare. "What about a kiss?" She raised an eyebrow. "On the cheek?"

"You disgust me," Lily spoke up.

"Then my work here is done," James said in a sickly sweet voice while still looking at Hermione.

"Take your work else where," Lily instructed. James sighed, took his arm off Hermione and turned to Lily.

"Is someone jealous?"

James and Lily went into full feud pushing Hermione to one side. She sighed and looked to Jazz. "Sandwich?" she proffered to Jazz. Jazz eagerly took one as they both turned to watch the argument. "Doesn't this annoy you?" Hermione pointed at the shouting pair. The common room had ceased their activities, at this point, to see what Lily and James' latest drama was.

"It'd be the end of the world if they didn't argue at least once a week," Jazz answered between bites of her sandwich. "Besides, if they didn't, where would I go for entertainment?"

"But aren't they a little old for this?"

"GROW UP, POTTER!" Lily chose that opportune moment to shout even louder. In a flash, James had his wand out and pointing at Lily.

"JAMES!" Hermione shouted handing Jazz her plate and stepping in front of his wand. "What do you think you are doing?" James looked shame-faced at his wand. He muttered something as he put it away.

"HA!" Lily laughed at James. Hermione's anger flared up.

"Lily!" she snapped turning to face her, "You're just as bad as him." They both flared up, shouting their defences to her. "STOP!" She held up her hands. "I'm not listening to you. I'd expect this from five year olds."

"She has a point," Sirius spoke up from the corner.

"Shut up!" James pouted. Hermione gasped as a sharp pain went through her head. "What is it?" James asked touching her gently on her arm.

Hermione shrugged his arm off. "Nothing." She looked between Lily and James. "Just grow up." She stormed off to the girls' room without another word, ignoring James' shouts. Not a moment after she'd slammed the door shut did the newly change memory, from not ten minutes ago, flash through her mind.

Hermione blindly found her away to her bed and sat down, rubbing her temples. For the first time it wasn't passing by quickly. It was like she was living the memory. Just a week before she had arrived in the past it happened. It was recent. Yet she could see what it should have been too.

What had originally been Hermione scolding Harry and Ron in the library for not revising for their exams was being replaced. _Lily_ was doing the scolding. They were visiting Harry's for the Easter holidays and Hermione was laughing as Lily told them off. But there were no earlier memories of Lily. Why was it changing there?


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: **None of it's mine...except Freya, Rajni, Anna and Jazz. The rest of belongs to Ms Rowling, the lucky woman.

**A/N: **Thanks once again to everyone who's reviewed this story. It really is overwhelming how popular this fic is. It's not that great, but thank you for thinking it is. I'm terribly sorry this wasn't up sooner. I had hoped it would be up last week, but life wouldn't let me sit down to work on it properly. Anyway, I've not had anyone look over this one, so any grammar or spelling mistakes you see gives you full rights to slap me silly. This is an odd chapter and kept going in a different direction than I wanted it to go, but I hope you enjoy it.

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**Chapter Seven**

A loud bang woke Hermione up instantly. She sat up in a daze, still feeling exhausted, and looked at her closed hangings in confusion. "Ow," a voice grumbled. Hermione frowned and pulled her hangings to find Lily in a heap on the floor.

"Lily?" Freya called from her bed. Hermione jumped out of bed to go and help her.

"What?" Lily replied gratefully taking Hermione's proffered hand.

"You fall out of bed again?" Freya asked. Hermione looked round to see that everyone else still had their hangings closed.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Lily brushed herself off.

"Nightmare again?" This time Jazz asked the question.

"Yeah," Lily sighed.

"What nightmare?" Hermione asked watching Lily climb back onto her bed.

"Oh it's nothing. I have this dream about once a month that I'm marrying Potter." Hermione laughed. "It's not funny," Lily pouted, "I wouldn't wish that on anyone."

"Dreams sometimes signify what we want in life, you know," Hermione told her with a smirk. Lily swatted her away from the bed.

"Go back to sleep. It's-" Lily checked her watch "-half past six on a Sunday morning." And on that note, Lily closed her hangings shut with a devilish look on her face. It was then Hermione remembered the memory of Lily. It was so clear, and oddly comforting. Knowing Harry had both his parents growing up made her so happy.

Feeling wide awake now, Hermione quietly got dressed. She needed to think this over. In just a few small actions she had changed her future so much she was no longer sure what she would be going back to.

Taking a look over at Jazz's bed to make sure she wasn't awake, Hermione felt safe enough to leave the room in the outfit she had picked without being approved of. She smiled to herself. It was nice that she had someone looking out for her on the girly front. She'd never had that before. She grabbed her shoes and left.

Hermione reached the common room to find she wasn't the only one who was up early. James was sat on a chair in the corner, lazily playing with a Golden Snitch. "Hermione," he spoke up in surprise, "what are you doing up this early?" He sat up straight as she walked over to the empty chair by him.

"Lily woke me up by falling out of bed and I couldn't get back to sleep. Why are you up?" Hermione slipped her shoes on and sat back.

"Wait…Evans fell out of bed?" James asked with a smirk on his face. Hermione frowned at him causing him to almost lose the Golden Snitch. "I, er, couldn't sleep." James looked around shiftily while answering her question.

"You're lying," Hermione stated.

"What makes you think I'm lying?" James avoided all eye contact with her now.

"You're starting to sweat," she teased.

"Fine! I had a nightmare." James hastily shoved the Snitch into his shirt pocket. "I have it about once a month and when I have it, I can't get back to sleep." He looked to her sheepishly. "Just don't tell anyone…please?"

"I won't." Hermione mulled it over a moment before asking, "What's the nightmare?" James suddenly became interested in a thread on the arm of his chair.

"I'm marrying Evans," he pouted. Hermione couldn't help herself when a giggle escaped her. "It's not funny."

Hermione straightened her face. Lily and James were obviously meant to be, they were having the same dreams. Or 'nightmares' as they put it. "So if marrying Lily is such a nightmare, then why do you act like you fancy her?"

"Excuse me?" James looked at her as though she'd sprouted tentacles. "Fancy Evans? No! I think you really are coming down with something. Besides, you know that you're the only girl for me." He winked at her. Hermione rolled her eyes before getting up. "Where're you going?"

"To the library," she answered, already halfway to the entrance.

"Can I come with you?" James was already up on his feet and following her.

"No." Hermione was outside the common room when she'd answered with James close behind.

"Why not?" He was sounding like a petulant child.

"Because I want silence," Hermione explained. James continued to follow her down the stairs anyway.

"I can be silent," he boasted. Hermione stopped abruptly causing him to bump into her. She turned to look at him. "What? I can be silent."

"James, the last time you said you could be silent, you said 'I want you' seven times within the first ten minutes of you being silent. You don't know how to be silent." Hermione proceeded to descend the stairs hoping that he wouldn't continue to follow her. She needed to be alone so that she could mull things over.

"But it's true, you do want me…you just don't know it yet." Hermione stopped again and turned to find James hot on her heels with a flirtatious grin on his face.

"James," Hermione wailed exasperated, "it isn't me you want. And believe me when I say…I don't want you!" James was still grinning at her. It wasn't going in, but then, what was new? She sighed and went back to walking down the stairs. "Stop following me."

"I'm keeping you company," he called to her. She paused once more.

"I don't want company. You're a distraction." James watched her for a second. It really was like looking at Harry and her heart ached to be in her own time.

"Can I show you something? Then I promise to leave you for the rest of the day." Hermione gave in instantly and nodded. She'd never get her thoughts straight with him loitering round. James grabbed her hand and dragged her down the stairs.

James weaved her through corridors, more stairs and a hidden passage that she remembered seeing on the Marauders' Map but had never been through. He finally came to a stop on a seventh floor corridor. "Look!" James proudly instructed. Hermione watched him with amusement as he pointed for her to look out the windows. When she finally turned her head to glance out the window, her breath was taken away.

"It's so beautiful," Hermione whispered. It was a vast view of the school's grounds and the lake. The sun was halfway above the horizon, its heat already warming her face. Seven years at Hogwarts and she'd never noticed this view.

"I knew you'd like it." She glanced to him. "I come here when I want to think. So I'll go now and let you think." James winked at her.

"How did you know I wanted to think?" Hermione asked stunned.

"Well, you were going to the library without your homework and you wanted silence. It can only mean one thing; you need to think." Hermione laughed. "See, I do pay attention." He nudged her gently before walking away.

She watched him leave before turning back to the view. Instantly her mind went to the memory of Lily. Would Hermione really be going back to a future with both Harry's parents alive? And what exactly was it about Dean Thomas and Draco Malfoy's future she was meant to change?

Hermione watched the scenery before her as the spring sun touched it with its light and warmth while she tried hard to comprehend what was happening to her. To her future. '_Just stop over thinking it and let it happen,_' a voice inside her mind told her. She sighed and leant down on the ledge. It was right, the voice. If she continued down this path, she was going to make herself ill. Dumbledore was right too; everything happens for a reason. She just needed to do one more thing before she could feel ready to let her path take its course.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

Feeling completely happy with the wording of her letter and with all the questions she needed answers for, Hermione sent her letter to Benedict Waverly. And as if by magic, she'd felt like a weight had been lifted off her. It was time to just let things happen rather than over analyze every action. Taking a deep breath, Hermione left the owlery for the Great Hall; she was starving.

"Hermione, where've you been?" Jazz greeted her sternly, "I didn't approve these clothes! Turn round!" Hermione giggled while turning round on the spot before taking a seat next to her. "They'll do. Just don't do it again."

"Yes, mother," Hermione smiled taking a look around the Gryffindor table and spotted Lily and James hissing insults to each other a little further down. "Are they still arguing?"

"What else is new?" Jazz asked rhetorically while spooning more scrambled eggs onto her plate.

Hermione frowned; she would love to know how they end up together. Pushing that thought quickly to the back of her mind she pushed her gaze further up the table and spotted Remus, Sirius and Peter huddled closely together. Suspicious goings on, as usual. Across from them Freya, Anna and Rajni huddled closely together. Girly goings on, as usual. Then her eyes went back to James and Lily.

Hermione watched them closely, taking her eyes away only to see if she was putting her toast on the right plate. There was something familiar about their sniping. It was like she'd heard that same conversation before.

"Maybe if you noticed what was going on right in front of your face we wouldn't be having this conversation!" Lily snapped in a low voice. James rolled his eyes.

"What exactly is it that I'm meant to be noticing?" he asked in exasperation. "I don't know what it is you want from me." Lily's buttering of her toast speeded up in anger.

"That's my point!" Lily growled. James muttered something to the enchanted ceiling that sounded like 'give me strength'. "What'd you say?" Lily was looking murderous at this point.

"I'm not a mind reader, Lily," James snapped back. Hermione's jaw dropped; it was Ron and her in their sixth year. They liked each other, they really did. They were just too stubborn to tell the other. Hermione smiled. At least Ron and herself had sorted out their differences and given it a go…but they were meant to be just friends.

Maybe it was time to give them a nudge. Hermione grabbed her buttered piece of toast and jumped up. "Where're you going?"

"To the library."

"It's Sunday, Hermione. Surely you can stop studying for just one day?" Jazz asked. Too late, Hermione was already at the doors of the Great Hall. It was there Hermione walked straight into Lucius Malfoy. "Trust her," Jazz muttered to herself before moving up to the rest of the girls to find out the latest gossip.

"Roper," Lucius greeted her curtly.

"Lucius," Hermione replied, stepping back from him. "Was there something you wanted to say to me last night?" Lucius frowned then remembered the rude interruption of Evans and Potter.

"I was just enquiring into your whereabouts. Only you were being vague…as per usual." She smiled sweetly at him. "What is it you're hiding?" Hermione shrugged her shoulders and walked past him towards the stairs. He scowled spinning on his heel to follow her.

"Why are you following me?" she asked not looking back at him.

"Because you intrigue me," he answered truthfully. Hermione glanced at him from the corner of her eyes. "You're so vague about yourself. It's refreshing."

"Refreshing?" Hermione was intrigued herself now. Although, being followed by people was getting old.

"Yes," Lucius sighed, sounding almost bored. "So many girls always feel the need to tell me everything about themselves. Even some of the Gryffindors."

"I love me, who do you love?" Hermione said sarcastically, entering the corridor leading to the library.

"I cannot help it if women find me…irresistible," Lucius spoke stiffly.

"You sound like James now," she laughed.

"Who? Potter?" Hermione nodded. "Don't be so ridiculous."

"Oh, honestly, Lucius," she groaned, "just go away." He didn't. Instead he followed her straight into the library, following her round the shelves like a lost soul. Knowing that with Lucius around she wouldn't be able to sort out her plan for Lily and James to get together, she grabbed the nearest book and sat down with it. "Why are you still here?"

Lucius sat down next to her. "You never answered my question. Where were you yesterday?"

"Why are you being so nice to a Gryffindor?" she asked in return. Lucius eyed her up closely. Hermione ignored him and focused her attention on the book. It was about time travelling, of all things.

"What is it you're hiding?" he finally asked.

"Many things," she answered. Hermione felt like he could see right through her the way he was watching her. She shut the book and paused before looking to him. "Can you tell me something, Lucius?"

"Within reason." He sat back in his chair and waited for her to speak.

"What are your views?" she asked slowly, still not sure if she was willing to hear the answer. She liked this side of Lucius Malfoy. The side that didn't know she was Muggleborn.

"On what?" he asked bemused at such a strange question.

"On everything. Anything. Just talk to me about your views."

"Erm…" Lucius trailed off, not really knowing where to start. He crossed his arms and gazed round the library, pondering over his answer. "I think that the Blacks are a little psychotic," he said tentatively.

"In what way?" It was weird to think that a future husband of a Black would think this.

"In their obsessive views on Purebloods and Mudbloods. It's overbearing."

Hermione bit her lip hard at his use of Mudblood. At least it hadn't taken long to get to where she wanted him to go. "What are your views?"

"My father's views are that Mudbloods should be stamped out of the magic world." Hermione was gratefully his eyes weren't on her. It was hard going listening to this and she almost wished she could take her question back. But she needed to know now if this was what they meant by changing Draco Malfoy's future.

"But what are _your_ views?" she pushed.

Lucius was silent for so long thinking about it, that Hermione was sure he'd forgotten what they were talking about. "Mudbloods don't belong in our world. There's a reason for them being born into Muggle heritage." Hermione nodded in defeat. "You agree?"

"What? Oh, no, I don't, actually." She stood up to leave. She should have known from the start that the Lucius Malfoy in her future had always been that way. The only thing that had changed was his power.

"Where are you going?" Lucius grabbed her wrist. She looked down at his hand, his left hand, before looking to his eyes. The hate wasn't there that she'd so often seen in his adult self, but if he knew about her heritage, she knew it'd be there instantly.

"Why do you talk to me, Lucius?" He looked at her in confusion. "Tell me, honestly. Why do you talk to me? And why are you nice to me?"

"You don't fear my family name," he answered immediately, "there's very few who don't fear the power my family have and they're the ones that earn my respect. You should be grateful. Very few get that off me."

Hermione's eyes dropped back down to his hand firmly wrapped round her wrist. She shifted her eyes to a little further up his arm. "Can I see your forearm?" Lucius let go of her liked he'd been burnt and had a look of horror on his face.

"What are you trying to imply?" he asked indignantly. Hermione gently took his left forearm and pushed his sleeve back. Nothing. Lucius took his arm back hastily. "I would never lower myself."

Hermione looked at him bewilderment. "You remember that, Lucius, when you're kissing the hem of his robes."

Lucius watched her leave with pain etched all over her face. Surely she wasn't a Mudblood? But that wasn't possible. He'd seen the magic she could do. It was powerful, something a Mudblood could never possess. He got up to follow her but a letter landed on the table before him out of no where. Lucius looked down at it icily. He'd been summoned.


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer:** Once again, it's not mine. JK Rowling has that honour.

**A/N:** I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I know I take an age to update but I was having a major blank on the story and had lost all my notes for it. But I found them two days ago and here we are. If you've stuck with me on the wait, I bow down to you. Hope you all enjoy this chapter, and thanks again for all the reviews. It means a lot to me. And please forgive me for any mistakes, it's gone unbeta-ed. Read on.

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**Chapter Eight**

The first lesson on a Monday morning was Herbology with the Slytherins. Hermione stepped into the greenhouse apprehensively. She hadn't seen Lucius at breakfast, but she knew she'd have to see him in this lesson. It was too close to exams to be skipping lessons because she was avoiding someone. In fact, would her exams here count, or would she have to re-sit them when she was back in her own time? Hermione rolled her eyes at herself. She was over thinking again.

Deciding that what was done with Lucius was done, Hermione did her best to ignore the last of the students entering the greenhouse and concentrated on the discussion Freya and Rajni were having; who their latest crushes were.

"Er, H-Hermione?" She turned to find Peter stood behind her. "Would you be my partner today?" he asked nervously.

"I thought Remus was your partner in this class?" Peter paled a little and shook his head.

"He's not, er, he's…er, not well." Hermione found herself instantly thinking about the timing of the month. It was a full moon.

"What about Sirius or James?" She wanted to be nice to him, but his betrayal in the future was far worse than how Lucius Malfoy turned out, and she couldn't quite stop her skin from crawling when Peter was around.

"They always partner with each other." There was a hint of sadness in his voice and Hermione felt sorry for him.

"Okay," she gave in with a small smile, "I'll be your partner." Peter's face lit up and Hermione felt that familiar twinge.

'_Please don't pass out,_' a little voice within her pleaded. She leant against the table trying to concentrate on her surroundings to no avail. At least it was quick…and a strange one. When she was in her fourth year she had an argument with Peter about being an Animagus. Once it tucked itself into her mind, she frowned and looked to Peter.

"Are you okay? You've gone really pale," he told her nervously.

She smiled weakly at him. "I'm fine." Peter's face clearly said he wasn't convinced. "It's nothing, Peter. I'm fine." He couldn't argue as the Professor had chosen that moment to bring the class' attention to her. And Hermione couldn't help but note that there was no Lucius.

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Hermione sat listening half-heartedly to what the girls were saying about the looming exams while picking at her food. She berated herself silently when she caught herself peering over at the Slytherin table. She hated herself for caring, but deep down she knew he wasn't around because of what she'd said. It was something serious. And no sooner was the thought bouncing round her mind, something happened.

It wasn't quite a memory change, but she knew something had happened that was changing the future as she thought about it. It felt like it was about to change, but something more had to happen before it could. Sighing, she rubbed her forehead roughly trying to get a grip of it all.

"You okay?" Lily asked. Hermione opened her mouth to speak, but didn't know what to say. Hermione just shrugged. Lily smiled and put an arm round her. "You really need to stop stressing over everything. You'll put yourself in an early grave at this rate." Lily stood up to leave. "Coming to the library?"

"I'll come up in a moment," Hermione smiled. Lily nodded and strolled away from her.

"Where's Lily gone?" Rajni asked Hermione's back.

"Library," Hermione answered finding her eyes shift to the Slytherin table. She gave up on eating and pushed her plate away. She suddenly felt like she was being watched and glanced up at the entrance to the Great Hall. There he was. Lucius Malfoy was stood, or more like swaying, at the entrance. He looked pale and rough. She felt physically sick. "I'm going to the library to revise." Rajni and the girls nodded and agreed to follow her up soon.

Reluctantly Hermione walked towards where Lucius was stood. He watched her movements and noted her face of disgust. She refused to look at him as she walked past. Hermione felt a strong grip on her arm. "I told you I would never lower myself…Mudblood!" Lucius spat out the last word.

Hermione turned to him, her face flushed in anger. "I couldn't care less what you do. You're nothing but a fraud, Lucius Malfoy." She pulled her arm away and dragged him into a corner of the Entrance Hall, noting that he was allowing himself to be pulled a little too willingly. "You walk around with this so called 'power' you apparently have over others, but you've done nothing to deserve it. You're just following what your family want."

Lucius flared up and stood at his full height, slightly leaning over Hermione yet still swaying a little. "If that's true, why is there nothing marring my skin here?" He roughly pulled up the sleeve on his left arm to reveal bare skin. The effort of doing the simple task had been too much and he leant on the wall to steady himself. He'd been punished. Greatly.

"Probably the first time you've managed to disobey family orders, and more than likely because you didn't want to be wrong about what I said last night. You don't know how to think for yourself, Lucius. You think and do what people expect you to think and do…including thinking of me as a Mudblood." She no longer had anything more to say to him and stormed away from him, ignoring her urge to help him to a seat.

"You don't know anything about me!" Lucius shouted to her retreating back indignantly still leaning heavily on the wall. A few passer-bys looked on intrigued as to what could get the famously cool Lucius Malfoy riled up. But it was over before it'd started as Hermione continued up the stairs ignoring his comment.

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It was nearing closing time in the library and Hermione and Rajni, the last of the revisers for the day, were being shooed out by the librarian. They were still throwing random questions at each other while walking out. The exams were less than two weeks away and Hermione had hardly stuck to any of her revision timetable since she'd come to the past.

"Ah, Miss Roper, just the person I need to see," Professor Dumbledore happily told her as her and Rajni almost walked into him exiting the library.

"I'll see you in the common room." Rajni parted ways with her while she followed the Headmaster.

"Is something wrong?" Hermione asked trying to keep up with his long strides.

"Not at all. Nothing to worry about." He smiled down at her, giving nothing away. Hermione followed him in silence. The walk was rather uneventful…until it happened. She could see, clear as day, Lucius Malfoy recommending a book to her in Florish and Blotts when she was twelve. He looked at her like he'd known her all her life. Then Draco Malfoy discussing Potions with her. Many memories of Lucius, Draco and even Narcissa Black danced across her mind as a burning pain seared through her head while the memories tried frantically to find a place.

"Miss Roper, can you hear me?" She could hear Dumbledore's voice becoming louder. She finally opened her eyes to find she was lying on the floor with the Dumbledore leaning over her, concern in his eyes. "Should I tell Mr Waverly to visit another time?" He gently helped her to stand up.

"No, it's fine. Is he really here?" Dumbledore nodded. "I'd really like to see him about my letter." Hermione dusted herself down before they continued down the hallway, her mind still on the new memories of Lucius Malfoy and his family. It was all surreal. She had actual _nice_ memories of the Malfoys. How was that even possible? And then she could no longer dwell on it when she found they were already at the gargoyle statue.

"I shall return in a moment…I have the sudden urge for some sherbet lemons," Dumbledore told her. She smiled at him. He gave the password and disappeared back down the corridor. Hermione practically found herself racing up the stairs to speak with Benedict Waverly. Maybe with some more answers, the questions would stop bothering her.

"Miss Granger, how lovely to see you," Benedict greeted her cheerfully with his sight still on Fawkes. "What an amazing creature, don't you think?" Hermione nodded her agreement. Taking one of the two seats in front of Dumbledore's desk, she waited for him to join her. "Now, I thought it best I actually see you face to face while we discuss your questions." He gave Fawkes a quick stroke down his back before taking the remaining seat next to Hermione. "I'm no good at writing letters," he explained. "So where would you like to start?"

"I'm confused about all these things that are changing in my past…er…the future, er," Hermione pulled a face trying to figure out the tense that she need to use, "my past in the future?" Benedict chuckled heartily at her and nodded for her to continue. "Well, I had something change quite drastically the other night. Someone I know to be dead in the future is now alive, but in all the things that are changing in my memory, she only appears once. She's there in something I was doing in the same year that I left…if that makes sense to you, only when I try to think of things leading up to that memory, she's not there. As far as I know, she's dead…how is that possible?"

"My, I think we're all getting confused by this," he teased a little, "I think I know what you mean. Lily Evans' future is not set in stone yet, that is why you've seen nothing change leading up to the only memory you have of her."

Hermione's eyes widened, "How did you know-"

"I'm an Unspeakable, my dear, we know everything," he smiled. "I know that there are others in your past, our future, who are meant to die, yet with you here, they've lived. And you'll find that you've only seen glimpses of what is to come for them, what has happened for you. That is because your time here isn't complete. A full change in your past will happen when it is time for you to go back."

"When do I go back?" she asked eagerly.

"Soon," he answered vaguely. "Just know that you shouldn't worry about your actions here causing such terrible things."

"But what if I do something to cause it all to go back to the future I've come from, or I've made it worse?"

"Like I said when we first met, this is why the things that have changed haven't replaced your original knowledge of your past. You have to remember it to know what is needed to be change."

"I'm getting a headache," she groaned leaning back into the chair. "Everything is so vague on details, how do I know what I'm meant to change and what I'm meant to leave alone?" Her mind flittered to the new memories she'd just freshly acquired coming here.

"You're here to change the lives that three people are meant to have, are you not?" She nodded. "Then you must understand that to change the lives they will lead, you need to changes the lives of those around them too…including Lucius Malfoy's." Hermione laughed lightly finding herself no longer surprised at his knowledge. "He was never meant to take it, you know?"

"Pardon?" she asked but had heard him clearly.

"I've said too much, but know that you're doing what you were sent here to do." Hermione felt she should ask more. She knew she should ask more. Only she didn't feel up to it anymore. A break from getting her head round this was needed. "Would you like to go over any of the other questions you asked?"

Hermione went to shake her head and paused, "Who sent me here?"

Benedict smiled knowingly and got up, "You'll know in good time. But do let me know when you'd like to speak with me again." She sighed and watched him leave via the Floo network.

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Hermione was tucked away in the corner of the Gryffindor common room, attempting to do her homework, but her concentration wasn't with her. It'd been a long week with all the professors being extra tough on them as the exams drew closer. And then there was the fact she was in the past to change her future that was constantly on her mind.

She tried to read the same paragraph only her eyes wouldn't read the words. It was time to give up for the night. Snapping the book shut, Hermione gathered up her bits of parchment and shoved them into her bag haphazardly. At least it was the weekend.

"Hermione?" She glanced up from her shoving to see Peter coming up to her. She forced a smile and continued with the last bit of her shoving.

"Are you okay, Peter?" Hermione asked politely. She zipped up her bag and sat back in her chair as he took a seat opposite her at the small table.

"I was wondering if you could help me on my Transfiguration homework?" he asked nervously.

"Where are the others?" she snapped at him, avoiding eye contact. She had her own work to do, never mind helping others with theirs.

"They're all busy and just keep giving me the answers." There was a hint of sadness in his voice, but he hid it with a small smile.

Hermione instantly felt the guilt run through her and looked to him. "I'm sorry, I'm a little tired, Peter, I-"

"It's okay, I'll see if Lily can help." He went to get up.

"Peter," she smiled, "I'll help you in the morning, okay?" His face lit up.

"Thanks, Hermione, I really appreciate it."

A sharp pain hit her just as she was about to stand up and fell back into her chair. She groaned in frustration as new memories of Peter took up a place in her mind. Nothing big. A conversation here. An argument there. This was becoming very annoying.

"Hermione?" Peter was knelt by her side shaking her a little. "Are you sure you're really okay? This seems to happen to you a lot."

Hermione smiled gratefully at him. "It's fine. I'm fine. It'll stop soon. I think it's the stress of the exams." She cringed inwardly. Lies were coming so easily to her now. And they just kept building up the longer she was here.

"Maybe you should go see Madam Pomfrey?" Hermione shook her head and got up.

"Don't worry about it, I'll be fine. I'll be in the library in the morning." She didn't leave him much room for argument as she grabbed her bag and left for the girls' dormitory. When she reached the stairs, she heard a name she hadn't heard once since she'd been there. It sent chills up her spine. Or rather, Hermione heard the avoidance of a name.

"Yeah, You-Know-Who is getting stronger, and he's apparently building up followers now," a girl spoke in a low, conspiratorial voice to her friend. Hermione paused to listen to the two girls hidden in the corner.

"I can't believe he's just killing people now because they don't agree with him. Poor David, he must be devastated." Hermione had heard enough. It was then, climbing the stairs, that she realised she was in a time that was the start of Voldemort's devastation.

Throwing her bag down and sitting on her bed, Hermione took a deep breath and something inside her clicked. The reason for her being in the past had finally settled with her. It no longer felt wrong. She was there to help stop Voldemort. And stop him she would.


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: **Not mine, only Hermione's roomies are.

**A/N: **What's this? Can you really believe you're eyes? Why yes, it's an update so soon after my last one! Anyway, thanks go to my Irish friend Lab for saying that the end of this chapter does work and encouraging me to post as is. Let's hope the rest of you like it too. Thank you once again for your lovely reviews. Beware, it goes un-Beta-ed. Enjoy!

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**Chapter Nine**

A loud crack of thunder woke Hermione up from her sleep. She sat up quickly trying to get her bearings and glanced at her watch. Ten past eight. She rubbed her eyes roughly before pulling open her hangings, and glanced around the room. It was still dark.

"Finally awake, eh?" Jazz called over from her bed. "It's been going on for nearly an hour and you've only just woken up." She laughed and looked to the other girls who were all wide awake and laughing with her.

"I hope it doesn't do this for Hogsmeade next week," Anna groaned, "It'd be just my luck to get soaked on our last Hogsmeade weekend."

Freya threw her pillow at her, "You worry too much. Stop it."

Hermione smiled; she wasn't alone on the worrying front. Throwing the covers back, she got up.

"Where are you going?" Jazz quizzed.

"To help Peter with his homework." She shrugged her shoulders and pulled out some clothes.

"I feel so sorry for him," Rajni stated. "His so called friends are always so…" she tried to find the right word, "not cruel to him but not far off it. _And_ they never help him with anything."

"Well, I blame Potter's arrogance for that. It's always getting in the way of everything!" Lily was practically growling.

"Lily, let the poor blanket go. It's done nothing to you," Jazz teased. Lily smiled ruefully and let go of the scrunched up blanket.

Hermione shook her head and left them to get dressed while they discussed the best hex they could put on James Potter. She moved quickly so that she could get to the library before Peter. She needed to get in some extra revision, she was so far behind.

Fifteen minutes later, after a quick inspection off Jazz, Hermione was walking speedily through the corridors. As she reached the corridor with the library, she heard footsteps behind her. She nervously turned to see Sirius Black running up to her.

"The speed you walk at is not normal," he huffed a little.

She frowned at him. "Why are you following me?" He looked around before grabbing her hand and proceeded to pull her back in the direction of where she had just come from. "What are you doing?" she asked indignantly. Before she knew it, he'd pulled her into an empty classroom. "Are you going to tell me what you want now?"

Sirius smirked at her, "You're going to help me." Hermione folded her arms defensively. "You'll like the plan I have mind."

"You're a little sure of yourself, aren't you?" Hermione snapped.

"Are you always in a good mood like this?" Sirius asked taking a seat on one of the desks.

"Do you always drag people into empty classrooms?" she spat back.

"We could be here all day doing this," he sighed in defeat. "I would have asked you in the common room, but you were gone before I'd even stood up. Will you help me with something?" Hermione eyed up him up. He seemed sincere enough.

"Why aren't you asking the others? I'm sure James or Remus would help. And Peter would love to help you if you just gave him half the chance."

"I can't ask James to help me because the plan is about him, and besides, I need a female's help." Hermione didn't look amused. "Is there any way I can convince you to help me?"

Hermione considered it for a moment and her curiosity peaked. "What's the plan?"

"To make James and Lily see sense." Sirius waited eagerly for her response. She gave him a blank look. "Well don't rush to tell me what you think."

"See sense in what way?" she asked.

"I know, you know and I think the whole school, professors included, know that James and Lily were meant to be together. But they're just too stubborn to admit it."

Hermione sat down on the desk next to him. She knew that they _had_ to get together or one of her best friends wouldn't exist when she went back to her time. But she wasn't a great believer in matchmaking people. It had to happen on its own.

"I'll listen to your plan, then I'll get back to you."

Sirius mulled it over for a second before giving in reluctantly. "I want you to go on a date with James-"

"No!" Hermione spoke instantly. Sirius frowned. "Sorry, but he's arrogant enough. It needs knocking out of him otherwise it'll get him into trouble one day. And if I agree to this, he'll think that he was right all along about me."

Sirius chuckled at her. "You didn't let me finish." Hermione wasn't convinced but let him continue. "You _agree_ to the date, you're not actually going on it."

"You can't do that!" Hermione wailed. It was almost cruel to do that.

"What? I'll be sending Lily in your place," he defended himself quickly. Hermione elbowed him in the side.

"I know that! And that's what you can't do." Sirius pulled a face as he rubbed his ribs. "You can't trick them into going on a date with each other. It won't work. Someone will get hurt."

"Then what do you suggest we do?" he pouted.

"Let them work out themselves," she suggested like it was the most obvious thing he should have thought of.

"If we do that, someone will get hurt anyway with their bickering." Hermione pursed her lips. "You know I'm right." He winked at her.

"Don't do that," she instructed standing up. "I'll think about it." She gave him a small smile and turned to leave.

"Where are you going?" he asked jumping up after her.

"To help _your_ friend with his homework." She stopped and turned back to him; a thought had occurred to her. "Why are you friends with Peter?"

Sirius looked taken aback by the question. "Because I am."

"That's not an answer, you know?" Hermione folded her arms waiting for a response.

"I don't know," he finally answered truthfully. "He just latched on to us and no one told him to go away. So he became part of the furniture of the group really."

"It shows that you're not interested in him as a friend," she stated, "and in my opinion, that's worse than actually bullying him." Hermione turned and left Sirius in the classroom. It didn't take him long to race after her.

Sirius pulled her arm to stop her walking. "You're new here. You know nothing about us, so what gives you the right to come in and immediately judge us!" Hermione flinched at the anger in his words. She'd never known him to be angry in her past or this one.

"I'm sorry," she apologised sincerely, "it's just Peter is feeling so left out and you don't help any when he asks for your help." Hermione gently pulled her arm away from his grip. "And you'd be surprised what I know about you…Padfoot."

Sirius wanted to stay angry at her for trying to second-guess his motives and who he was, only he couldn't. He smirked at her, "How did you know?" Hermione shrugged and walked away before she said anymore.

Hermione was in the library and sitting down, taking her books out of her bag, when it hit her. She pushed her fingers on her temples trying to will the pain away. So many memories changing so quickly this time. All of them involved most of the friends she'd made here, but as adults. One that stuck out was a meeting with Lily, James, Sirius, Remus and Peter in her first year. It seemed to be the first time she was introduced to them during the Easter holidays.

"_Mum, dad, this is Hermione and Ron," Harry introduced them to the waiting people at King's Cross station._

"_Hermione?" James asked looking at her in amazement. Hermione smiled timidly. "I knew a Hermione in school. Hermione Roper."_

"_James, she won't know that," Lily hissed at him before looking to Hermione. And before she knew it, Lily was hugging her tightly. "It's so nice to finally meet you."_

_Hermione pulled away, looking to Harry for an explanation before the others pulled her in for a hug too._

"_What do you mean _'finally'_?" Harry asked in confusion at their strange behaviour. Hermione was practically using Ron and Harry as a shield now._

_  
"Well we've heard so much about her…and Ron," Sirius quickly added as an afterthought._

_  
"No you haven't," Harry smirked._

The memory stopped there. It was as though something more had to happen before the rest could continue. Hermione opened her eyes and scanned the library before smiling to herself. 'They must eventually know where I'm from,' she thought to herself.

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It was nearly lunchtime when Hermione had finished helping Peter with his homework, and her stomach made it quite clear on what time it was after skipping breakfast.

"Thank you, Hermione. I'm really glad you helped me." He smiled shyly before leaving her to gather up her things. And no sooner had she put her books away did Sirius walk into the library. He was making a beeline for her.

"I haven't decided yet," she answered his unspoken question. He stopped dead in his tracks just before the table she'd been working at. Hermione smiled and picked up her bag. "I want my lunch." As she reached him, she stopped in front of him.

If she did things right, Sirius was alive and had never been to Azkaban in her 'new' past. Hermione realised how much she missed his youthful presence in the future she'd left. Before she could stop herself, Hermione was hugging him tightly. "Hey…what's this?" he asked yet hugging her back gently.

"You'll know one day," she spoke into his shoulder. She let him go and began walking towards the exit.

"Are you always this cryptic?" Sirius called after her turning to follow her.

"Shhh!" the librarian hushed from behind her counter. Hermione smiled at him and continued out the door.

"I could copy James and insist that you want me, you know?" he smirked falling into step with her. Hermione rolled her eyes and ignored the comment. "You're right. I don't need to proclaim to the world that you want me. We both know it's true, that's all that matters." Hermione playfully pushed him.

"You're as bad as James," she scolded gently.

"It's a gift," Sirius teased. Hermione shook her head and began descending the stairs.

"Hermione! Sirius! I could be deeply wounded by this scene of you two alone together," James called to them racing down the stairs to catch them up. "But I know Sirius wants to marry Jazz!"

"No wonder you two are best friends. I don't know who's worse." Hermione left them to bicker while she speeded up on the walking. When she reached the bottom of the staircase, she found Remus and Peter there waiting for Sirius and James, who were still bickering behind Hermione. "And now we have a full set!" Hermione exclaimed teasingly walking towards the Great Hall.

"You want us all, don't you!" Sirius shouted to her retreating back. Hermione laughed to herself and proceeded to sit at the Gryffindor table. She was the first one to arrive for lunch. Propping up her Arithmancy book on a jug, she was now ready to revise and eat at the same time. She froze when a familiar pain hit for the second time that day.

What felt like a million memories were changing. So many and so quickly. Gripping onto the table, the pain tripled. Hermione could hear a voice speaking to her somewhere, but right now, she needed to avoid passing out. Suddenly she was reliving one, like it was happening again. Hermione had received a photo in the post off Lily from when Lily was in school. It was of Lily and her friends. She was sent the picture the day before she'd arrived in the past and Hermione saw herself in the photo, clear as day.

"Roper!" a male voice snapped in her ear. Hermione blinked, her vision quickly coming back into focus. She glanced up to find Lucius Malfoy looking down at her.

"What?" she asked icily. Lucius narrowed his eyes at her.

"Meet me on the Quidditch pitch after lunch," he instructed. Hermione barely had time to let the instruction sink in before Lucius was off back to his table.

She frowned and quickly forgot about her new memories. Seeing James and co. walk into the hall, she knew she'd not be revising. Especially with Lily and Jazz following behind them. Sighing, she put her book back in her bag. This was going to be a long lunch with both James and Lily eating at the same time.

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Hermione found Lucius sitting in the Slytherin stands when she got there. She took a deep breath and willed this to go quickly. She'd heard arguing all through her lunch, she didn't want to be in an argument herself after that. She slowly walked up to where he was sitting and took a seat a little apart from him.

"What do you want, Malfoy?" Hermione asked in a tone that told him she wasn't really interested in what he had to say.

"You infuriate me and I should hex you," he said simply. Hermione laughed bitterly as she stood up to leave. "Sit down." She looked at him and made a point of standing. "I'm not apologising. You lied to me." Hermione sighed in frustration and turned to leave. "Thank you!"

She froze, not sure she'd heard correctly. "Yes, I said thank you." Hermione slowly turned back to face him. "If I hadn't tried to prove you wrong, I'd be kissing the hem of the Dark Lord's robes right now."

"Dark Lord?" she questioned, knowing it was only Death Eaters who'd called him that.

"Yes, my father tells me he's a man to be feared and respect," Lucius answered not realising what she truly meant.

"That's up for discussion," Hermione spoke bitterly. "No, I'm just intrigued as to why you would call him 'Dark Lord'. I heard it was only his followers that called him that." Hermione watched him, waiting for some sort of backlash.

Lucius thought about it for a moment. "I suppose it's a bad habit I've inherited off my father." He looked to her in confusion. "How did you know about his followers? Very few people know that he's gathering Purebloods to join him."

Hermione took a seat next to him, taking her time to get her wording just right. "Let's just say that I've been in the presence of his followers and have heard what they call him." He waited for a further explanation on it but saw in her eyes she wasn't going to say any more on the topic. "What do you really think of Voldemort?" Hermione finally spoke, noting the flinch at hearing his name.

"I think he's a man who wants too much control. I'm my own person. No one tells a Malfoy what to do." Lucius looked to her and smiled. It took her breath away. She'd never seen a natural and meaningful smile off Lucius Malfoy. "Of course I'm waiting for my letter telling me that I'm not fit to be a Malfoy."

"You should smile like that more often," Hermione told him before standing up, "It makes your eyes look more…friendly."

Lucius smiled once more at her, "But I meant what I said. I still believe that Purebloods have the stronger magic. And that it shouldn't be mixed with Mud…Muggle blood."

"And if Purebloods didn't mix with Muggles, there would be more Squibs in our world. It's the only way magic will keep going." Hermione smirked at him.

"That's up for discussion. But not right now…I have some business to attend to," he smirked.

Hermione laughed, "I shall leave you to your business then." He nodded to her and Hermione would have left only…third time is the charm.

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"_Hey, Granger, what was the next ingredient?" Draco Malfoy hissed across the desk to Hermione. She stirred her Potion and took a side glance at Snape._

"_It's on the board, Malfoy!" Hermione whispered back. Draco smiled in embarrassment._

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_Hermione was in Florish and Blotts purchasing her books for her looming fifth year. She spotted a book she'd been looking for, some light reading before school started._

"_You swotting up again, Granger?" a familiar voice spoke from behind her. She smiled and turned to greet Draco Malfoy just as his parents joined him._

"_Hello, Hermione," Narcissa greeted her politely. "Are you still not looking after your hair? You looked so pretty at the Yule Ball."_

"_I don't have the time, Mrs Malfoy. I just wanted to do well in school."_

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"_Hermione, why is it that all the adults I know keep acting like they've known you for years?" Harry asked as they boarded the Hogwarts Express. It was time for their second year of school._

"_Harry, I'm Muggleborn and not even thirteen yet. How am I meant to know this?" she teased him._

_  
"Because you know everything," Ron teased back as they found a compartment._

"_You should hear how many times Peter kept telling me that you sound like a nice girl. I think he wants me to marry you," Harry laughed._

"Hermione!" a voice called to her from somewhere. Hermione groaned at the ache in her head. "There you are!" She felt a sudden pressure on her chest. Opening her eyes Hermione found a mass of messy, black hair on her chest.

"James," she croaked, "What happened?" James stood up and sat on the edge of her bed.

"Malfoy says that you were on the Quidditch pitch and you just collapse. Not that I'll say this to his face, but it was lucky he was walking by at the time." Hermione forced herself to sit up and noted how dark it was bar the small amount of light coming from her bedside table.

"Am I in the hospital wing?" James nodded. "How long?"

"Since this lunchtime. Everyone's at dinner. Madam Pomfrey wouldn't let anyone stay. Evans nearly hexed her with just a look. I hid under your bed." Hermione chuckled as he took her hand. "Hermione, I know something's wrong. Why won't you tell me?"

"It's nothing, James. It happens when I'm stressed." And stressed she was with how quickly her memories kept changing now. "I'll be fine when the exams are over."

"Promise?" he begged.

"Potter! Off the bed! And how are you still here!" Madam Pomfrey asked indignantly as she bustled up to Hermione's bed. "Go outside, I want a word with my patient." James saluted her and left the wing.

Madam Pomfrey waited for James to actually be outside and for the door to 'swish' close. She turned back to Hermione and handed her a small potion vial from her apron pocket. "Now drink this, it'll make your headache disappear. The headmaster came to visit and has filled me on some of the details about you. Also Mr Potter and Miss Evans have made it quite clear that this has happened before. So I've sent some more potions to your room; they're in your trunk."

"How did the headmaster know I was here?" she asked in disbelief.

"The man knows everything," the nurse smiled.

"Thank you," Hermione said gratefully.

"Now we shall say no more. Go to dinner. Eat. And look after yourself." Madam Pomfrey smiled and Hermione realised how young she looked. The nurse bustled off before Hermione had gotten off the bed.

Once she stepped outside the hospital wing, Hermione was ambushed by a hug. Or rather a James hugging her. "I can't breathe" she gasped.

"Sorry," James muttered letting her go. "I was worried. When we all saw Malfoy carrying you in, you looked dead."

"I promise I'll be okay, James, stop worrying." Hermione turned to give him a small smile and was met by his lips brushing against hers.

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**A/N:** So please tell me, does this ending work or not? I'm still undecided.


	10. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer: **The things I could buy if they were mine. But they all belong to J K Rowling. Lucky wench.

**A/N: **I'm really, very, very sorry for the time I've taken. I've had some things keeping me busy that just puts all my fanfic writing waaaaay down at the bottom of the pile. So anyway, this for some reason is a short chapter. I just couldn't seem to want to put any more into it. Thank you for the lovely, lovely reviews. I just can't seem to find why so many of you love this story, but I'm glad you do. Hope you enjoy this chapter. On a side note, I've taken HBP into consideration for this one. I know I didn't start the story that way, but try as I might, HBP's plotline just wouldn't let me ignore it anymore. Hope it works.

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**Chapter Ten**

Hermione jumped back in shock. James looked a little shocked himself that he'd done it.

"James!" Hermione admonished. He scrunched his face up in embarrassment. "I…you…James!" He nodded.

"Sorry," he said simply.

"But, James," she said in an exasperated tone. "I…" she needed to find the right words without hurting him. "I don't…like you in…_that_ way." Hermione bit her lip nervously. James nodded again.

"It's fine." He smiled brightly at her.

"Really?" she asked hopefully.

"You can't blame me for trying though, can you?" he laughed. Hermione smiled at him.

"Will you stop saying that I want you now?" she half-teased him. James poked her in the side before swinging an arm round her shoulders and leading her down the corridor.

"Never! I've a reputation to uphold."

"James," Hermione sighed.

"Now I completely understand if you change your mind, and naturally, you will get jealous if-"

"James!" Hermione wailed.

"But don't worry, you'll always be my number one girl. So-" Hermione shook her head and tuned him out till they reached the Great Hall. "Hermione?" She glanced at him while walking up along the Gryffindor table to where the rest of the seventh years were sat. "You want me right?"

"No. I really don't, James." She smiled sweetly at him before throwing his arm off her and falling into a spot between Lily and Rajni.

"Hermione! How come you're not in the hospital wing?" Lily demanded while eyeing up James in distaste as he took a seat opposite her. "We were so worried about you. What were you doing with Malfoy in the first place? And you-" she rounded on James "-how come Pomfrey let _you_ stay and not us?"

"Because everyone wants me to stay," James told her cockily. Everyone, including Hermione, shuffled away from the couple. It was then Hermione caught Sirius' eye. He raised an eyebrow. Hermione sighed and gave him a slight nod. After what had just happened leaving the hospital wing, it was time Hermione did something drastic to make sure that her best friend's parents got together.

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Later that night in the common room Sirius cornered Hermione, which wasn't too difficult as she had already cornered herself to study.

"Have you never heard of the word 'relax'?" Sirius asked with a smirk. She glanced up at him in annoyance; she'd lost her place in the book now.

"We've got exams in less than two weeks, relaxing is something I can do when they're over," she snapped at him and searched for her place. Sirius rolled his eyes and sat down next to her.

"You sound like Remus…only you're snappier and not as easy to win over," Sirius teased taking the book away from her. Hermione glared at him. "Anyway, you and I have plans to make." Hermione sighed in defeat as she sat back.

"Fine," she pouted, "But I'm not agreeing to a date with James. It'll only boost his big enough ego."

"Oh no, I have something better," Sirius smirked. Hermione narrowed her eyes in suspicion at him. "_You_ are going to persuade Lily to go to the Astronomy Tower to revise for the exam, and _I _will get James there on the pretence of plotting revenge on the Slytherins' latest prank."

"Okay…and how are we going to get them there without us?" Hermione asked sceptically.

"We tell them to meet us there," Sirius stated putting his hands behind his head in a cocky manner.

"And what if one of the other girls would like to come with Lily and myself to revise? Or Remus and Peter want to be part of your revenge plotting?" Hermione smiled sweetly at him.

"Remus and Peter are always reluctant to be part of getting revenge, so that's not a problem. And you're smart enough, just make sure that you ask Lily when she's on her own." Sirius' face just dared her to find another fault. When she said nothing Sirius laughed at her. "Okay, we get them there on Monday night."

"Fine," Hermione said reluctantly. "But I'm putting the blame on you if Lily realises what we did." Sirius shrugged passively at her.

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On Monday morning Hermione woke up with guilt on her conscience. She knew James and Lily were meant to be together, _had_ to get together, but the way they argued was vicious. She just didn't want to be the cause of their next one thanks to Sirius' plan.

They had Herbology first and Hermione would have asked Lily then, but the other girls were there, so that lesson was out. However, it was Potions next and out of the girls, only Lily and Hermione were in it for the N.E.W.Ts. She didn't know whether to count herself lucky or not for this.

Walking to Potions, Hermione made a big fuss of getting her Astronomy textbook out of her bag while muttering how she was going to fail miserably at the subject.

"Hermione, you've always gotten top marks for everything since you got here, what are you worried about?" Lily berated teasingly.

"It's the star signs; I'm always getting Pisces confused with Libra. And then there's Cancer and Virgo. I don't know what it is that makes me mix them up." Hermione rapidly flipped through the textbook hoping that Lily believed what she was saying.

"You've always got them right before," Lily pointed out as they came to a stop outside the Potions classroom. Hermione inwardly cursed herself for this.

"That was just luck. I hate that I don't know them properly." Hermione snapped her book shut and looked to Lily. "I'm going to have to do some extra revision tonight."

"No, you don't," Lily argued. Hermione bit her lip, this wasn't working.

"I do. I'll feel much better if I do." Lily frowned at her in amazement.

"Have you always been like this?" Lily asked with a smile.

"All the time…will you help me?" Hermione spoke in a rush.

"You don't need help." Lily nudged her to finally enter the classroom.

"Please. You always find the right ones so easily." Hermione flung her bag on the desk.

"Fine," Lily gave in, "but I still think that you're going to do just fine with it and don't need any help. On anything for that matter." Hermione smiled. "What time then?"

"Eight o' clock," Hermione told her while taking a seat as Professor Slughorn entered the classroom.

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At the end of Potions, Lily told Hermione she would see her down at the Great Hall in a few minutes; she just had to take a book back to the library before Madam Pince had a fit at her; it was already a day late. Hermione felt a twinge of guilt again about getting her up to the tower on false pretences. She quickly pushed it out of her mind. She would just have to come to terms that it was for the best. Lily had to be with James. Whether _they_ liked it or not. But they'd grow to like it. Eventually. Hopefully.

Just as she was about to leave, Hermione walked straight into Severus Snape as he was entering the classroom, causing her to drop her bag and its contents on the floor. "Watch where you're walking, Roper!" Snape sneered before moving towards the stockroom with Professor Slughorn in there. Shaking her head at his rudeness, Hermione started piling her stuff back into her bag.

It was stuffing the last book in that Hermione suddenly heard a distinct word come from the stockroom she'd not heard in a while. More specifically, since she'd last spoken with Harry.

Snape came storming out of the stockroom just mere seconds later as Hermione quickly stood up. "Are you always this slow?" he spoke icily.

"Naturally," she smiled stiffly at him before spinning on her heel and rushing off.

Ignoring the fact it was time for lunch and that she was actually quite hungry, Hermione raced to Dumbledore's office. Maybe it was this that she was meant to be here for. To hear what she had just heard and tell Dumbledore about it now so that he could do something about it.

Out of breath and with a stitch in her side, Hermione went through a list of sweets before the statue moved aside at '_Flying Saucers_'. Clutching her side and hoping he was there, Hermione ran up the stairs and practically crashed into his office.

"Horcruxes!" she gasped to him leaning over his desk. Dumbledore sat back in his seat with a bemused smile.

"Catch your breath first, Miss Roper," he instructed gently. Hermione nodded before sinking into a seat in front of his desk.

After a couple of minutes, she felt her breathing slow down enough to speak. "Have you heard of Horcruxes, Headmaster?" Hermione asked with a slight wheeze in her voice.

"Yes, I've heard of them, but the question is; where have you heard of them?" Dumbledore asked her seriously leaning forward.

"I've been told that I'm here to change things. What I do will have consequences that we actually want." Dumbledore nodded. Hermione took a deep breath and told him about Voldemort's rise to power, how he fell and the reason he was able to come back; Horcruxes.

"And you're sure about this? Horcruxes are what Tom has planned?" Dumbledore queried. Hermione nodded.

"He may have already placed them now. Voldemort had learnt about them during his time at Hogwarts, and having already killed three people before he had even left. But if you start searching and destroying them now, he'll never be able to cause the fear he had in your future." Hermione watched him take the information in before continuing. "There are seven pieces of his soul scattered, one of them being in Lord Voldemort himself. I know what four of them are, but in this time, I don't know if they will be in the same place as when they were in my time."

They both sat in silence for a little while. Dumbledore processed everything Hermione had told him, while Hermione ponder the possibilities of where the diary would be now.

A tapping of the glass brought their attention to an elegant barn owl waiting to be let in to the office. Dumbledore lazily waved his hand for the window to open. The owl swooped in, dropped a small envelope before Dumbledore and left without waiting for a treat.

He silently opened it and read the note quickly before passing it on to Hermione. She frowned as she took it.

_Miss Hermione Jane Granger's return date is set._

And that was all it said.


	11. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer:** It's all J K Rowling's stuff.

**A/N: **Once again, thanks to everyone who have reviewed this story. It means a lot to me that you take the time to do it. A special thanks to **Madm05** for going through some Horcrux theories with me. I had a couple of reviews pointing stuff out. I've not changed anything in the last chapter, but I might change the arc of where I was going as I see fit using the new theory information. Hope you all enjoy this next offering. It goes unbeta-ed, but I have checked over twice. Give me a swift slap if I've made mistakes please.

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**Chapter Eleven**

Hermione, for a part of the day, was in a daze after leaving Dumbledore's office. No one could get one word out of her at lunch. Sirius tried to approach her about the impending 'revision' arrangements with Lily, but she just looked at him like he wasn't there. Lily just about got out of her the time to meet at the tower as they had different lessons, and in case they didn't catch each other at dinner, what with Lily having her prefect duties as well. Even a sneaking arm coming round off James couldn't bring her back to earth.

Hermione had a firm date as to when she would go back to her time. She was going to see her family and friends again. A tiny bubble of excitement swelled in her chest. Just a tiny one. She hadn't been told the date, so it could be months away!

There was one moment in the first lesson after lunch where Sirius took up Rajni's seat next to Hermione and told her to spend some quality time with James. That almost got Hermione's attention back when Rajni muttered something about Sirius and James always wanting to fight over the same girl, and what exactly was it they were trying to prove. Hermione jolted, eyed up Rajni's back before hearing the word 'date' off Sirius and going back in to her daze. It finally felt real that she would be able to go home. There really was an _actual_ way of her getting home.

"Roper!" Sirius hissed halfway through the lesson. "What is wrong with you?!" Hermione snapped out of it and looked at him in annoyance. "Finally! Are you in with this plan or not?"

"Lily will be at the tower at eight. I just hope you know what you're doing," she snapped at him.

Sirius smiled confidently at her. "I always know what I'm doing. Personally, I think most of their arguments are because there are people around. It'll be interesting to see how they act with no around."

Hermione's head turned to him quickly. "You're not expecting me to actually hang around while it all goes wrong? I'm staying firmly put in the common room. _You_ can get the blame for this." She turned back to her note taking.

"Spoilsport."

"I wouldn't be me if I wasn't," she told him without looking up. "And don't think you're going either. If this is going to work, you need to be out the way."

"Now that isn't part of the plan," he pouted.

"You go and they find you hiding, then they'll know they were set up." Her tone said the conversation was now over. She'd done her bit and was not going to be part of it any longer.

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After her last lesson, Hermione went straight to the library while trying to avoid any sight of Lily in the corridors. She didn't mind skipping dinner, as the guilt she was bearing at the moment about the whole plan was too much and she just couldn't face Lily until it was over.

It was there that Hermione saw Peter just sitting down with a bunch of books weighing him down. The more she saw him in this time, the less she hated him and the more she felt sorry for him. Ignoring that little nagging voice in her head about him being a traitor, Hermione went to sit with him.

"Oh…hi, Hermione, what are you doing here?" Peter asked nervously while getting some parchment, ink and quill out of his bag. She frowned as she noted a couple of his books were about the dark arts.

"What've you got those for, Peter?" she asked taking out her Potions book to do the essay that was set this morning. Peter visibly blushed. Hermione was beginning to think she should have listened to the nagging voice a bit more.

"You'll think I'm being silly," he practically whispered.

"No I won't," she told him firmly.

Peter hesitated before speaking, "I just want to show the others that I can do good magic as well." Hermione looked confused. "James has got Quidditch, Sirius is great with doing new things for pranks and Remus gets really good marks…well they all do. I just want to show them that I can do it too."

Hermione smiled sympathetically at him. "Peter, you don't need those books to do that. I know you must feel that they sometimes forget about you, but one day you'll get to prove to them what an amazing friend you are and they'll realise how much you mean to them." Peter nodded but his expression said he wasn't convinced. "You don't believe me?" Truth was, Hermione wasn't sure if she did either.

"I think they'll never need me. I don't know why I bother sometimes," he spoke with a bitterness that reared the nagging voice again. "They only involve me in most of their stuff because I just happen to be in the same room as them."

Hermione sighed, not sure how she could talk him out of this sulk. "Peter, you start using those books and it's a downward spiral. You just have to remember that James, Sirius and Remus are teenage boys eager to impress the people around them and seem wonderful. But they're not. Soon they'll go into the real world and get a big slap in the face from the reality." She took a deep breath and stared at him. She was on a roll.

Peter fidgeted under her gaze. "I just want them to like me," he stated simply.

"They do, Peter, but the problem is they take you for granted…" she paused as something dawned on her. "I've just had an idea." Peter perked up at this. "Why don't you stay away from them for a while? When they just assume you're going to be part of whatever plans they have, make an excuse. Use me if you have to. They'll soon realise what a great friend they have, and how much they need you to be a part of things."

"What if it doesn't work," he moaned.

"You just have to make sure that it works!" Hermione told him firmly. Peter finally looked a little cheered up by this. "No one ever realises what they've got until it's gone." He nodded firmly at this statement and pushed the dark arts books to one side and opened his Transfiguration textbook.

Peter never noticed the blank look that came across Hermione as a memory shifted in her mind.

_Hermione was visiting Harry's during the summer after her third year of Hogwarts. It was the day before the Quidditch World Cup. They were sat round a table in the back garden. Harry and Ron were talking about who they thought would win. Everyone was in such high spirits._

_She watched as James shared a joke with Peter about something at the end of the table. She turned to Sirius who winked at her before joining in on the joke with James and Peter. Lily was talking about the Wolfsbane potion with Remus at the back door._

The memory stopped and quickly tucked itself away to be brought out at Hermione's disposal. She felt this warmth from it spread through her. That was before the headache hit her and she had to take one of the potions she kept in her bag.

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Eight o' clock came and went and Hermione found herself wearily watching the entrance to the library. Peter had left over an hour ago after completing his Transfiguration homework. It was taking all Hermione's effort not to race up to the Astronomy Tower and apologise for being late, completely forgetting about the whole plan. Then she'd remember that there would be no Harry to go back to if his parents didn't get that gentle push towards each other.

Then nine o' clock came and went. Hermione was the only one left in the library and the librarian was giving her the glare. It was time to leave the safe haven of the library and risk the wrath of Lily.

Hermione took her time packing away her things before walking to the Gryffindor tower. As she stepped out of the library she saw Lucius Malfoy walking down the corridor towards her. She hadn't seen him since that afternoon. It was still a little odd knowing that the Malfoy's in her past, the future, would no longer be the way she remembered them. How strange those little things can affect so much in life.

"Roper," Lucius greeted her curtly before turning to walk in the direction she was going.

"Malfoy," she returned the curt greeting. Then a flash of a memory…meeting Lucius Malfoy for the first time. It happened at exactly the same time as she remembered originally; the end of summer in Diagon Alley, just before her second year in Hogwarts. Only it was…friendly. Well, as friendly as a Malfoy could get.

"Do you always like to be this ignorant?" Lucius asked in annoyance.

"Pardon?" she replied with a frown.

"I was asking you how you are so knowledgeable for someone who hasn't been here very long. It's highly unusual, you know?" Lucius glanced at her before keeping his gaze ahead of him.

"Let's just say I'm very perceptive of my surroundings," she spoke in the same vagueness she liked to use for these sorts of questions.

"I've been thinking over the weekend. I don't understand how you could possibly know about…_his_ followers." Hermione shrugged casually without answering. "You infuriate me with this mysteriousness. I will find out about you one day."

"I'm sure you will," Hermione smiled. "By the way, did you get that letter off your parents?" she asked changing the subject quickly.

"What letter?" he asked. They paused at the top of the last set of stairs leading to the Gryffindor tower.

"The one claiming to disown you," Hermione said.

"Oh…_that. _No, not yet. It's only a matter of time. And I'm sure that I'll have a reward on my head now." Lucius said all of this without a flinch.

"Aren't you bothered that he might be after you?" she asked in concern.

"With Dumbledore around? I doubt it." Lucius turned to walk back down the stairs.

"But we leave Hogwarts soon, what then?" Hermione quickly asked after him. He stopped halfway down and looked back up.

"What's this? The great Miss Roper actually _doesn't_ know everything?" Lucius teased. Was that a twinkle in his eye?

"How much time have you been spending with Dumbledore?" she teased back before walking up the last set of stairs to the tower.

Hermione slowly entered the common room while wildly glancing round for Lily. She wasn't there. Neither was James. Or Sirius. She let out a breath before stepping completely into the room.

"Roper," a voice called from the corner. Sirius. He was smirking. In fact, he was grinning. Actually, the closer she got, the broader he was smiling.

"It worked?" Hermione asked in amazement before taking a seat next to him.

"Let's just say they didn't start battling it out when they bumped into each other." Sirius cockily put his hands behind his head in triumph.

"And?" Hermione asked eagerly.

"I snuck away once they started talking…like civilized human beings!" he exclaimed with pride. Hermione was shocked.

"What happened?" Hermione pushed for more details.

Sirius leant onto the arm of her chair and said, "Picture it if you will." Hermione knocked him off her chair.

"Get on with it."

"Well, Lily got there first. James got there about five minutes after her. They asked each other for us. Naturally they hadn't seen us. Then they were awkward about being there. And then….Lily asked how James thought he would do on the N.E.W.T.s and James said he thought he'd do well enough. Then I left." Sirius held his hands out like he was about to bow to her for a job well done. "I told you their arguing was for show."

Hermione rolled her eyes at him. "I hope you're right. I'm still blaming you if they find out."

"No blaming will need to be done. Just lots of praise," he suggested.

"No. You're ego is big enough as it is." Hermione got up and left him before he could reply to her comment.

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"Where were you last night, Hermione?" Lily asked as the girls were getting dressed the next morning.

Hermione stopped tying her shoes to look at Lily sitting on her bed. "Last night?" Hermione asked as innocently as she could.

"Yeah…you were meant to meet at the Astronomy tower last night to go over the star signs," Lily reminded her while running a brush through her hair. Hermione pulled a face that she hoped looked mortified. Lily laughed. "It's okay. I didn't think you'd show up. You were in world of your own at lunchtime that I wasn't even sure you remembered arranging a time."

Hermione felt relief flood through her. "Did you revise on your own?" Hermione asked quietly.

"Oh, no. James was there," Lily told her nonchalantly. A distinct breaking of something glass-like was heard from near Jazz's bed.

"I beg your pardon?" Jazz asked storming over to Lily.

"I was going to go through the star signs with Hermione. But she wasn't there, so I went through the planets and their moons with James. He'd been getting the moons all wrong." Lily didn't even look up at Jazz…or at any of the other girls.

"James? As in James Potter?" Freya asked from her own bed. "As in _the_ James Potter that you loathe and want to kill? That James Potter?"

"He's actually okay when he's not with the others. Not as...hyper." Lily stood up to find Freya, Jazz, Rajni and Anna were gathering round her.

Hermione felt sorry for her.

"Do you think he's done something to her?" Anna asked while feeling Lily's forehead.

"Could have done…maybe a love spell or something," Jazz suggested.

"Think it's one of his pranks gone wrong?" Freya asked.

"Oh don't be silly," Lily berated them all while pushing through them. "You take Potter away from that bloody group and he's actually alright. I spent two hours talking to him last night and didn't have one argument with him. In fact, I don't think we had a disagreement about anything."

"I think she's coming down with the flu. They say you do go a bit dolally when you've got the flu," Rajni piped up.

Lily rolled her eyes before remembering Hermione. "Hermione, you get along with James, tell them."

"Er, tell them what?" Hermione asked in confusion, and wanting to stay out of this.

"That James is actually capable of an intelligent conversation when he's in the right frame of mind," Lily spoke as she went to stand by Hermione, practically using her as a shield.

"I've never had a problem with James," Hermione admitted quietly.

"You know, I blame Sirius for Hermione's behaviour. He kept following her round yesterday after lunch," Rajni told the other girls. "You think Potter and Black have done something to them."

"For pity's sake," Lily groaned. "Come on, Hermione. Let's leave them to it before they drag us into some absurd plan of theirs' against the boys."

"Don't worry girls, we'll get you back to normal in no time," Jazz called after them as Lily dragged Hermione down to breakfast.


	12. Chapter 12

**Disclaimer:** Nothing of Harry's is mine.

**A/N:** I know, I know, long time no update! I'm so ashamed. But life just hasn't allowed me to spend time on fan fiction. Anyhoo, I'll get to the slightly important stuff. THANK YOU! Just thank you to everyone who is still adding this story to their alerts and giving me the odd review to kick my backside into touch. I really appreciate your patience with me. However, I feel I may not have done this chapter justice. I shall leave that up to you to decide, let me know what you think. Also, just a reminder that I started the story, the end included, before HBP, but naturally I couldn't ignore the Horcruxes from it. However, I don't think I can take into account any of DH. Just so you all know that.

I've had this chapter written for so long too, I just didn't know where I'd put it and was thinking I had to write it again. But upon discovering this, I found the rest of the story too. So I'm thinking that this story is nearing its end my crazy but lovable readers. Just bear with me a little longer while I tweak. I hope you enjoy this meagre offering! Shy xx

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**Chapter Twelve**

"Pass the jam, please," Lily said to James the next day. Remus, Peter, Rajni, Freya, Jazz and Anna watched with beady eyes. Hermione and Sirius glanced from the corner of their eyes. James passed the jar with a smile.

"The toast please," he said as she took the jar. She nodded and handed him a rack filled with toast from her left.

"Is anyone else finding this all very...scary?" Rajni asked but didn't need an answer.

"What did you get for the second question on the Astronomy homework?" James asked Lily.

"What are you _doing_?" Jazz suddenly demanded of them. They both frowned at her.

"It's called a conversation," James told her sarcastically. "It's where one person says something to another person. Then that other person says something back."

"Don't you dare ruin our last Hogsmeade visit with this...niceness!" Freya instructed them.

"And you two!" Jazz rounded on Sirius and Hermione. Their heads slowly looked up from their breakfasts, "Stop your flirting!" Sirius and Hermione looked to each other for answers that neither could answer.

Then it was Lucius' turn as he entered the Great Hall. "Oi!" Anna shouted to him, "And _you_ can stop trying it on with Hermione! She's not interested!" Lucius looked positively offended at the suggestion as he walked over to his House table.

"You don't think there's a spell on them all, do you?" Peter suggested as though Sirius, Hermione, James and Lily weren't there.

"Behave yourselves you lot. You're just being silly now," Lily berated.

"All I can say is that this...this _behaviour_ best have stopped by Friday. I want a nice, last Hogsmeade without any weird goings on. Understood?!" Jazz instructed forcefully.

"Oh for goodness sake," Lily muttered going back to her breakfast.

Hermione jumped when she felt a kick from Sirius' direction. She scowled at him as he winked cheekily at her.

"I saw that!" Freya rounded on them.

"Give me strength!" Hermione snapped before standing up. "Lily likes James, James like Lily. Sirius does _not_ like me and I do _not _like Sirius. And don't even get me started with Lucius. Now that that's cleared up will you all please just stop twittering on about it. Exams are in a week!"

"I do not!" Lily and James exclaimed together.

"Well, the arguments would make sense..." Remus admitted quietly. Everyone looked at Remus. "Don't you think?" he asked in a slight panic.

"And I never said that I didn't like you," Sirius added in after a moment.

"Shut up, you don't!" Hermione told him. "But you two do," she indicated James and Lily, "So once you've stopped being so shocked about it, learn it, live it, love it! Please, before everyone goes insane trying to second guess what's happening."

Hermione glanced round the Hall to find people were watching her now from all the tables. In embarrassment, she grabbed her bag and swiftly left. Keeping her head down and wishing desperately she hadn't said anything, she practically ran to her first lesson.

"Roper! Slow down!"

"What do you want?" she snapped at Lucius as he caught up to her.

"You seem...on edge," he smirked at her. She glared at him before coming to a stop outside the Transfiguration classroom. "There's something more to you that meets the eye." He leant casually against the wall by the door.

"Isn't there with everyone?" Hermione asked him pointedly.

Lucius raised an eyebrow at this. "Point taken. But with you...I can't put my finger on it. Something's off."

"Like what?" Hermione asked. Panic was slightly rising in her.

"Just...you know too much. It's eerie." And on that note, he walked past her. "Oh, and tell your little friends not to accuse me of...'trying it on' with you. Someone like you can only dream of being with me."

Hermione stood opened mouthed wondering what was getting into everyone today. Was there some sort of lust potion doing the rounds in the water? Then a hint of worry joined her ponderings. Did Lucius know something? Making a firm decision to avoid him more often, Hermione continued on to her first lesson with hopes of avoiding the others too. However, the latter was unlikely. Shame.

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The next few days saw James and Lily talk to each other rather than shout. They had actual conversations about stuff and found they had a lot in common with each other. The rest of them, bar Sirius and Hermione, sat huddled trying to figure out what they were up to. Was it some sort of elaborate prank they were playing on them? But then Sirius didn't seem to be involved, and he was always involved...unless...he'd dragged Hermione in to it too. They were spending an awful lot of time together.

Hermione and Sirius were actually revising, which is what the others should have been doing too. Hermione liked to panic that she couldn't remember every minute detail, Sirius liked to make things up so that she thought that she didn't remember every minute detail. Hermione soon caught on to this and threatened him with such pain that every boy in the land winced at the thought.

By Thursday, the rumour mill was in overdrive. Apparently James had asked Lily to go to Hogsmeade with him. They were to have a look at the house everyone seemed to be calling the Shrieking Shack. James knew a lot about the rumours behind that. But no one could confirm the rumours behind the rumours of that house never mind the fact that James had asked Lily to Hogsmeade. In the end, as neither Lily nor James would confirm nor deny the rumour, everyone just waited till Hogsmeade as they were getting a headache trying to figure out all the rumours.

Friday morning saw Lily and James' friends, bar Sirius and Hermione (again) had had enough and wanted to know what they thought they were playing at.

"What do you mean?" Lily asked confused as she passed the butter to James.

"This! Just look! Since when do you _pass_ things to Potter?!" Freya demanded with a look of disgust at the niceness of it all.

"What do you want me to do? Rub his face in it?" Lily asked rhetorically.

"Yes!" Freya said sharply like it was the most apparent thing to do.

"No wonder the boys are just flocking round to take you to Hogsmeade if _that's_ what you do," James commented before biting into his toast.

"I've got it!" Anna suddenly exclaimed. "It's got to be the stress of the exams. It must be. I mean, look at Hermione. She's actually revising with Sirius. Who on this earth actually would pick Sirius to revise with if they were in the right mind."

Jazz pointed at Anna, "You have a very valid point there, Anna."

"It has to be exam stress, in my opinion, it does funny things to people," Anna confirmed her point.

"Do you think they know we're here?" James asked Lily.

"It's not looking that way," Lily answered. She looked to Hermione and Sirius sat next to them. "Are they not bothering you with this?"

"Well, the girls are, but the lads just seem to be going along with it because they've no one to lead them in their pranks at the moment," Hermione admitted.

"I suppose thinking about it from their point of view, we've had nearly seven years of bickering-"

"Full on war, really," James interrupted Lily.

"Well, true, so I suppose it is a bit hard to taking in that we're..._not_ bickering anymore," Lily finished as she glanced over to the others.

"Either way, it's getting old. I can handle the odd suggestion that I'm coming on to Roper, but to suggest we're..._cavorting_ is just unthinkable! Someone as respectable as me!" Sirius spoke lazily.

"Who said I was cavorting with you?" Hermione asked indignantly.

"Who doesn't want me?" Sirius asked rhetorically.

"We don't!" Jazz, Anna, Rajni and Freya answered in unison, obviously listening in.

At the end of the day, Hermione was sat on her bed going through her Ancient Runes textbook to see if there was anything she was forgetting. She had to admit, even her head was hurting from all the revision and that Hogsmeade tomorrow would be a welcome break.

It was reaching in to her bag for her notes that Hermione remembered her list of things to remember about the past. She hastily opened up the compartment she'd hidden it in and withdrew the piece of parchment.

It was blank. Not a word on it. Not even a number to signify some of the dates she'd written down. Hermione turned it over a few times as though this would bring the words back. Confused, her hands dropped and her body slumped a little from its neat upright position. Why had it all disappeared? How was she going to remember the things that she'd changed now?

More questions with no answers. It was frustrating. Ancient Runes to one side for now, Hermione quickly scribbled down her questions on the same piece of parchment. Perhaps Mr Waverly could answer them.

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The next morning Hermione was the first down to the Great Hall for breakfast with her eyes eagerly on the entrance the owls came in. She knew they wouldn't be arriving for some time but she couldn't help herself. A date had been set for her return home, and it didn't sound too far away (she hoped) and so that left little time to get the answers she needed.

"Do you ever sleep?" James asked her as he took a seat opposite her. "I mean I know the thought of Hogsmeade is quite exciting, but surely you could have slept." Hermione half smiled at his teasing.

"You're up quite early, too," Hermione stated.

"This is true, but I'm assuming that none of the girls snore like Sirius, so I have a valid reason for being up this early. You don't," James winked at her. Hermione shrugged at him while playing with her toast. "What's on your mind?"

"Just the exams." It was half true. "_Will_ you and Lily be going to Hogsmeade together?" Hermione asked, quickly changing the subject from her.

"Why would you get that idea? Is it these rumours?" James asked in a panic. "I don't know where they've come from. Just 'cause were getting on now doesn't mean that we're going out with each other now!"

"James-"

"I mean, she's quite pretty and I can understand why the lads would want to take her, but I'm not!"

"James!" He stopped mid-rant to look at Hermione. "You like her, don't you?"

James' face gave him away as he looked bashfully around the hall. "Just don't tell Sirius, okay?" Hermione made the motion of zipping her lips up. "She's alright, Lily, but I've spent so long arguing with her that I don't really know how to be any different with her now."

"Why don't you just spend some time with her at Hogsmeade and see how it goes," Hermione suggested glancing at the students that were slowly filtering into the Great Hall.

"I can do that," James nodded as though he was going into battle and he was being brave about it. Then he stopped and looked to Hermione again. "Now I know we had a mutual feeling of love for a while, but you won't be too jealous will you?"

"James!" Hermione laughed. "You're ludicrous!"

"I try my best."

Not an hour later they were all in Hogsmeade, Hermione with her letter off Mr Waverly firmly tucked in her bag, eagerly waiting for her to read it. She kept trying to find moments to sneak off and find somewhere quiet to read it quickly, but it wasn't to be.

"Goodbye, Three Broomsticks! Goodbye, Madam Puddifoot's...I knew you well! Goodbye-"

"Jazz! It's not like you won't be able to come back!" Freya scolded her as the group walked through the high street.

"Once again Britain's summer has proved fruitful," Sirius stated glancing up at the looming black clouds. "I'm going for a Butterbeer before I get drenched." Naturally the group began to follow liking his logical thinking. Hermione took this as her moment to sneak away and find a quiet spot.

It was racing across the path to an alleyway that Hermione bumped into someone tall. "Oh, I'm so sorry," she began apologising as she started to look up. She froze. He was about a head taller than her, but the exact image of him.

"Dean?" she found herself mumbling before she could stop.

"No, Steven," he smiled at her before looking to the petite woman next to her.

"Is your surname Thomas?" Hermione gushed. The lady next to him gasped.

"M-mine is," she stuttered.

"Don't worry, dear, we're not all mind readers," Steven soothed her. "How did you know? Are you using magic?" he asked Hermione forcefully. She shook her head before taking a look around and leading them to the edge of the alleyway she was heading to.

"Look, this is going to sound crazy and slightly unbelievable, but I need you to listen to me very carefully," Hermione pleaded with Steven. His face told her that he wasn't sure.

"Are you a Muggle?" Hermione asked the woman. She nodded, clinging onto Steven's arm. "I remember Dean saying you were."

"Who's Dean?" she whispered.

Hermione paused and let her mind slow down; all those thoughts racing through her head needed an order.

"You'll have a son," Hermione declared to them. "And he looks just like you," she told Steven.

"Can you see the future?" Steven asked slightly impatient.

"No. I don't know what happens, but Dean has only mentioned a step-father. I doubt it can be you because he's the image of you," Hermione hurriedly told him.

"You're scaring my fiancé, so if you don't mind, we're going now!" Steven snapped.

"No, wait!" Steven's fiancé stopped him. "Are you telling me that my son- _our_ son- will grow up not knowing his father?"

"Yes," Hermione answered her honestly.

"Why?" she whispered the question.

"I don't know. I'm not close to Dean so he never spoke of it to me."

Steven sighed as though giving into something. "Death Eaters," he stated.

"Death Eaters?" his fiancé asked.

"You remember me telling you about this Dark Wizard?" Steven asked. She nodded fearfully. Hermione watched him hold her by the arms, wanting to protect her somehow. "Well, he's got followers, and they've been trying to make me join because I'm a Pureblood wizard."

Hermione's mind stepped into overdrive at this. Yet another life not quite the same because of Lord Voldemort. That explains why Dean was on the list.

"Does he leave me for them?" Dean's mother asked frantically.

"I don't know," Hermione answered truthfully.

"I would never do that to you, Leona! I wouldn't be marrying you if that was the case!" Steven shook her slightly.

Hermione felt that familiar shooting pain through her head. She'd done it. Memories flashed through her mind. It was memory changed she'd had before of being greeted by Lily, James and the others as though they knew her. But there, just to the side, was Steven and Leona, waiting patiently for their son with his little sister by their side.

"Are you okay? You've gone very pale," Leona told her politely.

Hermione smiled weakly. "I'm fine...you'll be fine!" She touched Steven's arm lightly, "You're stronger than them. Go to, Albus Dumbledore. Help him! You'll _both_ see your son grow up...and maybe another too!"

"Hey," Steven called out to her as she walked over to the Three Broomsticks, her letter forgotten for now, "What do you mean? Who are you?"

"Go to Dumbledore," Hermione told him again with a smile and a wave.


	13. Chapter 13

**Disclaimer:** Not mine, all J K Rowling's!

**A/N:** Yes I know, if I keep leaving it months before I update again, you'll begin to lose the thread of the story. Uni, work and home life has kept all my spare time, but recently I acquired some hours to spend in a nearby Starbucks. So the laptop came with and I have finished the story. I'll update every couple of days giving you chance to slap the chapter around a bit ;). Now, when it comes to book 7, I have to ignore it, so I'm reaffirming this being an AU story. Those of you who have stuck with this story for the past 2 years; thank you! I send out big squishy hugs to you all. As usual, my laziness has won and this chapter goes unchecked. If there's some godawful mistake in there that you just can't bear to see, let me know and I'll fix it a.s.a.p. Hope you enjoy this and where the story goes, it most certainly took on a life of it's own from here on out.

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**Chapter Thirteen**

Hermione stepped into the Three Broomsticks to find everyone taking up a very large corner. Freya waved to her to hurry and join them while pointing to a Butterbeer with her other hand. Hermione smiled gratefully and made her way over to them.

"Where've you been?" Freya asked as Hermione took a seat on the bench between her and Sirius.

"I just needed to get some air," Hermione lied.

"And an hour's worth of air wasn't enough?" Sirius asked in a tone that said he didn't believe her.

"I like air," Hermione said and wishing instantly she hadn't.

"Oooo, have you met a boy?" Jazz asked excitedly.

"No!" Hermione shook her head wildly.

"Oh, you have!" Freya said excitedly.

"No, really, I haven't!" Hermione insisted, feeling her cheeks burn up a little bit.

"Please don't tell me it was Malfoy!" Anna begged.

"Merlin, no!" Hermione gushed in disgust.

"Well who is it?" Peter piped up from the end of the table.

"Peter, you're worse than the girls sometimes!" Sirius berated him with a smile. Peter blushed while hanging his head in shame.

"There is no boy!" Hermione confirmed for them.

"At least we know it's not Sirius now," Rajni pointed out to them.

Hermione went to stop the route the conversation was going in. "Don't bother," Sirius said low enough for only her to hear. "Once they get going, there's no stopping them. They're a law unto themselves."

Hermione listened to them a while with different names being bandied around that she'd never heard of when Sirius nudged her again. She looked to him, but his eyes were watching something straight ahead. Hermione turned her head to see what he was seeing. There, in front of her very eyes, were James and Lily, heads close together, having a _very_ private conversation.

With Hermione's hand still holding onto her Butterbeer, Sirius clinked his with hers. "A job well done, I'd say," Sirius whispered into her ear.

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It was late in the evening, as Hermione was settling into her bed for some reading, that she pulled the letter out from Mr Waverly.

_Dear Miss Granger,_

_The future has already changed, therefore that list cannot exist._

_Yours truly,_

_Benedict Waverly._

That was it? All those questions and that was all he had to say? Feeling a little frustrated she shoved the letter into the middle of her book and threw it to the bottom of her bed. She no longer felt like reading.

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Having had a sleepless night Hermione sat bleary-eyed in the Great Hall not listening to anything that was being said. She could really do with some coffee, she thought to herself. A pang of homesickness hit her at the thought of that. Every Sunday her parents would be sat at the kitchen table reading the newspapers while sipping coffee. Please, not much longer, Hermione pleaded within herself.

A fluttering signalled the owls were coming with the post. Letters from home. The homesickness hit her a little harder. Just as Hermione was about to leave, a small owl dropped a note in front of her.

_Miss Roper,_

_Please would you be as kind as to visit me at 12 noon in my office. I'm rather fond _

_of sour apples._

_Professor Dumbledore._

Hermione frowned at the note. She glanced to the Head table to find that the Headmaster wasn't in his seat. She checked her watch; she had an hour to kill before having to see him.

"Who's your letter off?" Lily asked buttering more toast.

"Dumbledore, he wants to see me this afternoon," Hermione told her with a shrug.

"Weird," Lily muttered before biting into her toast.

"Roper, a word, please!" Lucius Malfoy's voice was in her ear. Hermione jumped as she turned to her left to look at him.

"Didn't we tell you yesterday?" Jazz told him flicking through the Daily Prophet.

"You have rather odd friends, Roper," Lucius stated sourly.

"Yeah, yeah, just move along and no one gets hurt," James piped up.

"What do you want, Lucius?" Hermione asked him ignoring the bickering that was starting up.

"A word...in _private_," he told her a little uncomfortably. Ignoring the protests of the others, Hermione got up and walked out of the Great Hall with him.

"What is it?" Hermione asked him again as they stepped behind a statue near the entrance.

"I need your word that you won't let slip of this to anyone," Lucius demanded of her. Gone was the cool exterior and here in front of Hermione was a young man slightly sweaty and nervous.

"How did he get to you? I thought Dumbledore was helping you?" Hermione panicked herself.

"What? Oh- it's not that!" Lucius calmed her. "It's...something else." Hermione waited for him to find the right words. "It's...a girl." The last word came out like a squeak.

"A girl?" Hermione asked in disbelief.

"Yes...her name's Narcissa Black," he swallowed hard while trying to remain indifferent about coming to Hermione with this. "I...I," he visibly swallowed again. "I would very much, er...she's the one I must have."

"Have?" Hermione asked indignantly. "Lucius, she's not an item that you buy. She's a person."

"Yes, yes, I know that," Lucius flustered. "But I need to know how I can make her mine."

"Well you can stop trying to own her for a start," Hermione huffed while folding her arms.

"Right, yes...you're right- how?"

Hermione eyed him up wearily. "Try talking to her, ask her about what she likes and stuff...just don't brag about yourself or make out that you will her own her."

"Yes- I can do that- how?" Lucius scrutinised Hermione, eagerly awaiting her pearls of wisdom.

Hermione took a moment to think about this. She only knew of the Malfoys as snobs and they hated her with a passion. So this was new. She thought back to the few times she'd met Narcissa in passing; nope, she knew nothing of her really.

"What are her grades like?" Hermione asked suddenly.

"I beg your pardon?" Lucius asked in confusion.

"This is all I've got to help you with, okay?" Hermione didn't bother to wait for him to agree and continued on. "Who has the better marks in the classes you're in together?"

Lucius took a moment to mull this over. "I am. Narcissa- well, what she lacks in academics she makes up for it with wit and beauty," he smirked. Hermione had a look of disgust on her face.

"You could have kept that to yourself," she pointed out. "Anyway, why don't you offer to help her do some last minute revising for the exams?" It was Lucius' turn to look thoroughly disgusted. "It would be a perfect opportunity to talk to her."

"Yes, you're absolutely right," Lucius agreed. "I could kiss you!"

"Please don't!" Hermione panicked.

"Don't be absurd, of course I wouldn't," he berated. "Remember, this must be told to no one!"

"I'm not a gossip!" Hermione raged slightly.

"See to it that it stays that way," Lucius warned before moving on.

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At one minute to twelve, Hermione was at the gargoyle statue telling it that it liked sour apples. He agreed by stepping aside to reveal the stairs leading up to Dumbledore's office. She lifted her hand to knock on the door once she reached it but stopped when she heard the Headmaster call her into the room.

"Hello, Miss Roper," Dumbledore greeted her with a smile. Hermione noted how tired he looked. "Thank you for abandoning your studies for a little while. I won't keep you long."

"Are you okay, sir?" Hermione asked in concern taking a seat in front of his desk.

"It's been a trying few days," Dumbledore admitted to her as he sat back in his chair, a small smile staying on his aged face. "However, they have been very successful too."

Hermione frowned at this. "The Horcruxes."

"Some of them, yes," he paused for a moment. "Three to be exact and I have knowledge of two more." He pulled at his beard thoughtfully.

"Are they destroyed?" Hermione asked eagerly.

"Not yet. There's a lot of power behind these objects and they need to be considered carefully," Dumbledore admitted to her. "I need to hear the future again so that I am completely sure on my task."

Hermione relayed all her knowledge to him slowly and carefully, making sure to not miss any details that may mean more than she knows. "Thank you, Miss Roper, you have been very helpful again," he praised her. She smiled gratefully at him before taking her leave.

It was later on that night while reading her Arithmancy notes in bed that she felt the full affects of helping him as more memories changed rapidly. They moved so quickly that she had no chance to see them clearly but somewhere deep down inside her Hermione knew they were changing to a better life. However, it didn't stop the side effects of this shift and she went to bed with the biggest headache she'd ever known.

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When Hermione woke up the next morning she had to stumble to her trunk and drink two of the potions Madam Pomfrey had made up for her before she could concentrate on anything. "Will I know who you are one day?" a voice spoke to her from her side. Hermione nearly choked on the last of the second potion as she looked up to Lily sitting with her on the floor now by her trunk.

"What do you mean?" Hermione asked with a hitch in her voice from panic. She threw the empty vial into her trunk and closed it.

"Don't worry, you don't have to tell me anything- I trust you," Lily told her quickly with a comforting hand on Hermione's shoulder. "But I just know there's something you're not telling anyone and it scares me a little bit."

"I'm sorry, Lily, I would give anything to tell you," Hermione admitted.

Lily smiled sadly at her. "Come on, it looks like it's going to be a lovely day, let's do our revising outside," Lily suggested before rudely waking the other girls up.

"Just because we don't have lessons for the next couple of days does not mean you can wake me up early to sit outside!" Jazz whined bitterly as they finished up their breakfast.

"You can work on your tan," Lily encouraged as she stood up with her bag.

Jazz eyed her up, "You make a valid point, you- you Witch!" She stuck her tongue out at Lily she got up too.

Lily gasped mockingly, "That hurt!"

"Has anyone seen the boys this morning?" Hermione asked lazily as she strolled down the Great Hall with them.

"Why?" Anna asked suspiciously. "You looking for Sirius?"

"Or maybe Lucius?" Freya added with narrowed eyes at Hermione.

"Not this again!" Hermione groaned, "There is no boy!" The teasing continued as they moved to the Entrance Hall.

"I believe she doth protest too much," Rajni winked at Hermione.

"For the last time-" Hermione was suddenly cut off by Lily shouting at someone.

"POTTER! PUT HIM DOWN RIGHT NOW!" Lily raced outside down the steps.

"Alright! They're arguing again!" Jazz shrieked with a hi-five to Freya before they all followed Lily outside. Hermione felt sick as she remembered Harry telling her about this. There was Severus Snape hanging upside in mid-air while trying desperately to hide his underwear.

"It's just a bit of fun," James laughed as he flung Snape higher up.

"JAMES!" Hermione couldn't help herself shouting as her eyes stayed on Snape in horror.

"Not sticking up for Snivellus, are you, Roper?" Sirius asked with a smirk. Before she knew it Hermione had stormed up to him and slapped him across the face.

"Potter, put him down now before you meet the same ending!" Lily instructed harshly while a crowd began to gather around them.

"Very well," James said lazily as he dropped his wand arm down. Hermione had never moved so quickly when she plucked her wand from her pocket and just about stopped Snape landing on hard on his head. Instead he landed softly in a crumpled heap.

A silence descended on the group as Sirius glared at Hermione, James and Lily glared at each other while Hermione watched Snape scrabble to a standing position. He breathed heavily as he spun round staring at the group. Lily went to move towards him but he took a step back. "I didn't need your help, you- you- you _Mudblood_!" A gasp rippled through the crowd as Lily started. "And that goes for you too!" he snapped at Hermione before racing back into the castle. Lily visibly drooped a little bit with a look of hurt and disappointment clear across her face.

"It was just a bit of fun, he knew that," James spoke half-heartedly, almost like he was trying to convince himself more than anyone else.

"Just stay away from him, Potter!" Lily snapped so fiercely you could almost feel the anger pulsing off of her. James jumped.

"Oh come on, like he hasn't been asking for it?" James snarled, his anger now picking up. Lily shook her head sadly at him before racing back into the castle. Freya, Anna, Rajni and Jazz quickly followed her. Hermione took a look at James and Sirius, both furious at her now. She was thoroughly disgusted in them and it showed on her face. A quick glance to Remus and Peter nearby told her how ashamed they were at just sitting by.

"I've never been so appalled in all my life," Hermione told them bitterly before taking herself back into the castle.

It was as she reached the top of the stairs that she was truly hurt. "I couldn't care less what you think, Roper," James's voice travelled to her holding such venom she'd never heard before from him. A sharp pain of hurt feelings rippled through and Hermione gasped as it did. She slowly turned back to face him, a tear travelled slowly down her cheek. James looked guilty and white-faced at what he'd just said. The crowd still gathered waited on baited breath.

"At least I know what kind of person you are now," Hermione told him shakily before racing into the castle with him shouting after her. She ignored him and kept running until she reached the girls' dormitory, where the other girls were all sat in anger. Something had noticeably changed within the group and Hermione wasn't sure if it would be for the better.


	14. Chapter 14

**Disclaimer: **Belongs to J K Rowling.

**A/N: **Here it is, an update! Told you I'd be back with it in a couple of days. Thanks to those who have reviewed, I'm so pleased you liked the chapter. Anyhoo, this one comes to you somewhat checked over; found some awful continuity mistakes in there that I just had to fix. But apart from that, I hope you like this one, I'm still figuring out if it works, however, it did get me from here to the next chapter, so I'll live with it. Enjoy...hopefully.

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**Chapter Fourteen**

The next few days Hermione spent all her energy trying to avoid James and Sirius. Knowing that James knew where she liked to hide or study, she avoided them like the plague. She was grateful there were no lessons while everyone revised hard for the upcoming exams. Only one person had actually been able to find her and it was by accident; Remus. She'd gotten up to leave so that he could have _his_ hiding place back, but instead he'd asked her to stay and maybe help each other revise. Hermione was thankful for this as she missed being asked random questions to test her knowledge.

Remus admitted to her that he should have stopped James and that he'd never heard him be cruel to a friend before. Hermione shrugged her shoulders and ignored the ghost of hurt she felt at James' words. "I stopped caring about what he thinks the minute he hurt me, Remus, so can we just continue revising, please," Hermione stated icily. Remus nodded in response.

The first time that James finally got a glimpse of Hermione was as they entered the Great Hall for their Arithmancy exam on the Monday morning. He'd raced up to her desk and dropped a piece of folded parchment on it before racing back to his own desk. Hermione turned to look at him coldly before ripping the parchment to shreds without even reading it. Lily caught her eye and smiled sadly at her. Hermione didn't need this on her mind when she was about to take the most important exams of her life.

It didn't stop James from trying to talk to her though. Remus had let slip that he'd been studying with Hermione, so every evening, as they studied for the remaining exams, Remus would hand her another letter with yet another apology on James' behalf. "I can't tell you how sorry he is, Hermione. He was just angry at being shamed in front of the school."

"And Snape or I wasn't? And what about Lily? She was just beginning to really like him and he does that to someone she sees as a friend!" Hermione argued back bitterly while shredding the letter up. Remus knew better than to question Snape being anyone's friend and kept quiet.

When the weekend after the first week of exams arrived, Hermione chanced staying in the Great Hall to eat her breakfast rather than grab a piece of toast and race to her sanctuary she'd been sharing with Remus. This was where she'd made a mistake. She should have stuck to her new routine.

It was too early to be up for a Saturday, but Hermione had thought if she was there early enough James would still be in bed. The Great Hall was peaceful with only three other students up already from Ravenclaw. Their noses were stuck in textbooks and they took no notice of Hermione as she took a seat at her own table.

The breakfast went peacefully as she watched the early bird students come into the Hall one by one, and sometimes in pairs. After she'd finished her porridge Hermione felt she could last the day without having to come down for food. The other mealtimes were more risky at bumping into James, so Remus would try to bring her food and sneak off when James wasn't looking; less chance of him following Remus and finding Hermione.

Pushing her bowl away, Hermione froze while the rest of the students in the Hall glanced to the entrance to see who at this early hour could possibly be arguing now. The argument carried on as they reached the entrance to the Great Hall, but now the arguers had stopped so that they could get the full force of their argument out properly. Hermione suddenly became very methodical in her movements, recognising the voices, as she wiped her mouth and stood up, while the few students in the Great Hall raced to the entrance to watch the scene take place.

Hermione took her time walking to the entrance, slowly hearing the words being shouted becoming clearer with each step she took. Slipping into the small crowd gathered, Hermione hid herself from James and Lily as they stood shouting at each on the bottom few steps of the staircase, their friends stood uneasily behind them at the top of the stairs.

"How many times do I have to keep repeating myself? I was _angry_! I didn't mean it!" James flailed his arms around in aggravation.

"You really don't get it, do you?! When you hurt a friend, there's no going back on it!" Hermione caught sight of Lily's eyes flickering towards the crowd and it was then that she saw Snape as he started to move away.

"I've been trying to apologise, but how do you apologise to someone that isn't there?!" James snapped as he took the last step down.

"Try harder, James!" Lily pushed the back of his head as she stormed into the crowd. Hermione quickly moved to leave only felt a hard grip on her upper arm.

"You've caused this!" Sirius hissed in her ear.

"You're hurting me," Hermione told him firmly with a cold stare while trying to snatch her arm back with no success. "What do you want from me? You caused this when you acted no better than a bully!" Hermione realised the crowd was now beginning to take interest in this little argument happening. "Let go of me!"

"Just keep away from us! And I mean all of us!" Sirius demanded spitefully. Hermione couldn't help it when tears sprang to her eyes. "You ruined everything!"

"What's going on?" Lily asked angrily as she pushed Sirius away from Hermione. "Did _you_ put him up to this?" She spun on James as he reached them.

"What now?" James asked in exasperation, with no idea what was going on now. His eyes landed on a very subdued Hermione rubbing her arm. He turned on Sirius. "What did you do?"

"Telling her to crawl back under the rock she came from," Sirius told him bitterly. Hermione barely saw James' reaction as he raced forward. She quickly stood between him and Sirius.

"STOP IT!" Hermione yelled. "You don't have to put up with me for much longer. I'll be gone soon; okay?!" Without waiting for any response, Hermione pushed her way out of the crowd and raced up the stairs. Only she didn't get all the way up the first set as that familiar pain hit her. This one was going to top all the previous ones she'd gone through.

It was like everything was moving slowly. Hermione turned to try and sit on the step, seeing James and Lily race after her; she could see them calling her but couldn't hear them. With such a blinding force of pain, Hermione saw the memories change. A summer at Harry's with Ron; Lily's showing her photos of Harry growing up and Lily and James' wedding day. Peter and her watching everyone place Quidditch in the field near the Potters' home. Sirius talking to her about being an Animagus. There were so many flashing through Hermione's mind that she couldn't see them all properly. They ranged from her first summer with her new friends; Harry and Ron, to her sixth year and receiving gifts from the friends of Lily and James. Even Lucius and Narcissa flickered pass in one memory from her fourth year.

While this had been happening, Hermione's friends of the past could only watch in horror and dread as she fell down the hard, cold steps. Each word that had just gone between them, each word said to Hermione, eating into them with such guilt it was soul shattering.

Sirius was the first to reach Hermione as she landed at the bottom of the stairs, a deep cut above her left eye bleeding profusely. Tears stung his eyes as he gingerly picked her up before racing to the hospital wing with James and Lily fast behind. "What is going on?" Professor McGonagall demanded of the crowd as she saw them stare up at the four people moving quickly; one being carried.

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Hermione woke up in the early evening while everyone was at dinner. "Thank Merlin!" a familiar voice spoke in a relieved whisper. She felt pain run through her as she turned to see Sirius sat at the side of her bed. "Madam Pomfrey! She's awake!" Hermione stared at Sirius through bleary eyes trying to figure out why she was in the hospital wing.

A bustling of skirts revealed Madam Pomfrey coming down the ward. "You, out while I talk to her," she instructed Sirius firmly. He reluctantly did as he was told. Madam Pomfrey waited until he'd shut the door behind him before turning to Hermione. "It's been a while since I've worried that I couldn't fix someone," the nurse spoke softly.

"What happened?" Hermione spoke croakily.

"You fell down the stairs, nearly a whole flight of them, I'm told. There were a few broken bones, which are fixed, and some cuts and bruises that are on the mend. You'll be sore for maybe a couple of days," Madam Pomfrey explained to her quickly. Hermione nodded in understanding. "However, head injuries are another kettle of fish. Especially with your...condition. There was a fracture, just a small one, but it was enough to have me almost send you to St. Mungo's, but the Headmaster arrived to stop me." She didn't look happy about this. "He'll be down to see you this evening."

"Am I okay now?" Hermione asked as she gently sat up.

"Now that you're awake, I can find out fully." Before she explained any more, Madam Pomfrey swiftly went back down the ward. Hermione waited patiently, trying to figure out what she was going to do. A few minutes later she came back with some parchment, ink and a quill. "The Headmaster told me you have been excelling in...everything." Hermione blushed. She handed the parchment, ink and quill to Hermione. "The 12 uses of dragon blood, if you please." Madam Pomfrey smiled at her before turning to leave.

"Oh, Madam Pomfrey?" Hermione called out. She looked back expectantly. "Could you please tell Sirius that I'm fine and that I'm sleeping?" The nurse didn't ask for an explanation but gave her a small nod.

Not long after Hermione had listed the 12 uses, Professor Dumbledore arrived. "How are you feeling?" he asked politely as he took a seat by the bed.

"A little sore...and lucky," Hermione admitted grimly.

"You understand why I could not have you sent to St. Mungo's?" he asked her seriously, probably one of the few times she'd ever seen him this serious.

Hermione nodded. "Too many questions about where I'm from would have come up."

"I also think it was safe to assume that you would be...in fairly good health with having the knowledge that you are to go back to your time," Dumbledore smiled a little at this. She handed him the parchment and he quickly scanned it. "Definitely in good health," he confirmed for himself. "That was all I came to see. And to tell you that Mr. Waverly will be here to see you on Monday morning. You are to stay here until then."

"What about the Horcruxes?" Hermione suddenly asked before he could stand up.

"It is going well enough," he admitted, "however, now is not the time to worry yourself about it." His memorable blue eyes sparkled at her. It made Hermione feel safe in the knowledge that it really was going to work; maybe Voldemort can be killed this time.

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Hermione woke up fairly early the next morning, but not early enough to have escaped the hospital wing and got away before she had _any _visitors. "How are you feeling?" James asked softly.

"Why are you here?" Hermione tried to say it with a coolness in her voice instead it came out forced.

"Hermione, I can't tell you how sorry I am," he pleaded to her. "I always say such awful things when I'm angry, but I never mean them."

"You need to control your temper then," she snapped as she began to get out of the bed. She couldn't be near him right now.

"You need to stay in bed, Madam Pomfrey told me you wouldn't be leaving until tomorrow morning for the exam," James told her quickly trying to keep her in bed. She was still too sore to fight against him and settled for just sitting up. "Look, I brought you your bag." He pulled it up on to the bed. James' smile fell when he saw Hermione was still glaring at him. A small silence fell on them as James hoped that Hermione would say something to him. She didn't. "Lily and I are still friends, you know?" he said hopefully to her.

"That's Lily's prerogative. She's known you longer so can judge your behaviour better, but I can bet she was never spoken to as hatefully as I was!" Hermione spoke bitterly with a hint of spite in her voice. It wasn't like her to be like this. "I don't think even my worst enemy has spoken to me with such hatred!" And much to her annoyance tears began to fill Hermione's eyes.

"Hermione, I promise that I never meant it! I will tell you every day if I have to. I was just so angry and ashamed that I ended up lashing out at you," James begged while trying to hug her but she just kept pushing him away. Eventually he settled for pushing her arms to her side. "Hermione, I'm sorry!" James said forcefully, "I would _never_ hurt anyone knowingly."

"What about Severus?" Hermione sniffed, "What was that? Boys being boys?" She finally looked him in the eye.

"At the time and on my part; yes," James admitted sheepishly as he let go of her arms.

"Have you apologised to _him_?" Hermione questioned as she gingerly lay into her pillows feeling drained in such a short time. His red face answered the question. "You humiliate him in front of the whole school and don't even have the decency to apologise to him?" Again, when James sank into the chair, it answered the question for her. "No wonder he held a grudge!" Hermione muttered without thinking about what she was saying.

"What do you mean?" James asked in confusion.

"Nothing," Hermione said quickly, "just apologise to Severus- publicly, and then I'll forgive you." Hermione cringed at herself for being a pushover on forgiving him so easily, but her mouth had run away with her and she needed to get James off the subject.

It didn't work. "What do you mean he _held_ a grudge?" James asked standing up.


	15. Chapter 15

**Disclaimer: **I suppose I own Anna, Freya, Jazz and Rajni...but that's about it really. Everything and everyone else is all Ms Rowling's.

**A/N: **So this one kinda ran away with itself, but not as much as the next chapter did! Thanks for the reviews once again! It makes my day to see a review in my inbox rather than spam. This would have been up a couple of days ago but I've been working on some writing forums. They're nearly done, and when they are, maybe I can persuade you all to join up XD. Hope you like this new chapter!

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**Chapter Fifteen**

Hermione amazed herself at how quickly she rescued herself from the predicament. Ron would be proud! "James, all the pranks you've pulled on him and the rest of the Slytherins and you really thought that Severus- or any of the others- wouldn't hold a grudge against you?" She even managed to give him a disappointed look. James hung his head in shame. At least this wasn't a lie; just the wrong meaning behind what she'd said.

"So if I publicly apologise to Severus then you'll forgive me?" It was James' turn to change the subject slightly now.

Hermione looked at him carefully and it hit her. She didn't know James completely and James didn't know her. What right did she have to make him beg for forgiveness? If Lily could forgive him after seven years of being around him, then why shouldn't Hermione forgive him that little bit easier? Was she really so sanctimonious?

"You don't have to do that," Hermione spoke softly, the guilt hitting her hard now. James looked hopefully at her. "It's not my place to tell you what to do or make you apologise to me; that comes with friendship." James frowned at her. "Harry looks so much like you and sometimes I think you are him, and sometimes I assume that I can talk to you the way I would to Harry."

"Hermione, I do consider you a friend, why wouldn't I?" James took a seat on the edge of the bed.

"We barely know each other really and here I am acting like I have the right to berate you for your behaviour- I don't. Only your close friends have that right," Hermione explained to him. James didn't know how to respond to this. "If Lily can forgive you for what you did, then you can assume that I already have." James grinned boyishly at her. "But James, I think what happened between us just shows that _we_ aren't friends."

"You've lost me now, I thought you were forgiving me?" he asked in confusion.

"I have!" she said quickly smiling shakily at him. "But no one speaks to friends the way we spoke to each other that day. We're acquaintances- not friends."

James opened his mouth to speak only it took him a while to say something. "You baffle me, Hermione. But as far as I'm concerned, you are my friend and I'll always carry that guilt of how I spoke to you."

"You're very sweet," Hermione told him earnestly. "Thank you."

"Hello?" a voice called from the end of the ward. They both turned to see Sirius entering the Hospital wing.

"Please take him away, James," Hermione quickly whispered to him. "I don't think I could bear the guilt of seeing him just yet." James wasn't sure what she meant but did as she wished.

"I'm afraid, Sirius me old chum, that we have to leave Roper here to get some rest before the big exam tomorrow," James said cheerfully as he walked down the ward to Sirius.

Hermione rolled onto her side with her back to them so that she couldn't see Sirius look at her questioningly. "Why won't she see me?" Hermione heard Sirius ask.

"I don't know, mate. She seems to have a lot going on at the moment," James told him in a voice that clearly said he wasn't entirely sure what was happening with Hermione at the moment. When she heard the door click shut Hermione felt a strong wave of homesickness for her time take over her.

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A couple of hours later Hermione found herself waking up from a light sleep having not moved from the position she'd was in when James and Sirius had left. Her back felt a little stiff as she rolled over to find Lucius standing over her. Hermione clutched her chest in shock as her heartbeat sped up for a few seconds. "You scared me!" she declared loudly.

"Listen, I won't keep you for very long," Lucius said getting straight to the point and fold his arms slowly. "It appears you were right about helping Narcissa with her revision." Hermione sat herself up noting that she wasn't feeling as sore now.

"Is that it?" Hermione asked as she leant down for her bag at the end of the bed.

"She has agreed to visit me over the summer," Lucius said with a cool demeanour but with a hint of pride in his voice at achieving such a feat.

"Well I'm happy for you," Hermione told him yet expecting there to be more to this conversation.

"I _don't _thank people below me, you know?" Lucius spoke matter-of-factly taking a seat in the chair now.

"I wouldn't expect it any other way, but why are you here?" Hermione finally asked the question.

"My gratitude will be shown in keeping your secret," Lucius explained with a sly smile. Hermione felt her face flush.

"What secret?" she asked in a feigned innocence that came out more like a strangled cat.

"You see, I know you're hiding something. I just cannot seem to figure it out. It's most frustrating!" Lucius' cold grey eyes held Hermione's warm, brown eyes. "You know this school so well yet have only been here for a few months. It took me most of my first two years to know everything."

"Is that all you have?" Hermione asked in amusement.

Lucius leant forward slightly, "Don't mess with me; I can make your life very difficult." Hermione folded her arms in defiance and sat up to her full height to try towering over him. It didn't work. Taking the situation in, Hermione realise that she was there for Draco Malfoy too.

"What do you want from me?" Hermione asked in defeat.

"Just tell me one thing and I can promise you that I will take your secret to my grave- that is how I repay people," Lucius told her smugly. Hermione eyed him up and weighed her options. The memories of Lucius and his family that were new to her flashed up. She was here for a reason and his son was part of it; it was becoming like a mantra.

"I will tell you one thing and then you'll probably figure out the rest of it by yourself," Hermione started resolutely. Lucius nodded solemnly and leant further forward with his elbows on his knees, hands clasped together. "You will marry Narcissa and have two children; a son then a daughter, although it was just a son at first."

Lucius appeared to have been frozen to the spot with this news. Eventually he sat back in his chair, watching Hermione carefully and wondering how to take this piece of information. "The future?" he finally asked. Hermione nodded. "How?" She shrugged. It was now that she was wondering if she'd just made the biggest mistake of all.

A pain flashed in her temple. "Get Madam Pomfrey," Hermione instructed him forcefully as memories hit her quickly confirming she'd done the right thing. Every birthday that she could remember sped by quickly; a gift of strange and curious things arrived each year, things that she would only understand once she'd entered Hogwarts. And then the last one hovered for a moment; arriving at the train, ready to begin her last year of Hogwarts and Lucius Malfoy approached her. A note she hadn't understood until now. _I look forward to seeing you at the end of this school year._ The memory quickly found a home and Hermione woke up to find Madam Pomfrey holding a potion for her and Lucius Malfoy gone.

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That evening Hermione was sat up in the bed eating her dinner while rapidly going through her notes and books for the exam. A couple of students had come and gone through the day due to some wand movement or other backfiring on them and Hermione had spent most of her time since Lucius had been as she was now; revising hard. There had been a few attempts of people trying to visit her, but Madam Pomfrey had firmly put a ban on them while she spent the rest of the day recovering fully.

However, someone slightly unexpected got through the ban as Hermione finished the last of her dinner; Peter. "Hi," he spoke timidly once he'd reached her bed.

"Hi," Hermione said with a polite smile. "Are you okay?"

"Shouldn't I be the one asking that question?" Peter asked in return with a small nervous laugh.

"Oh I'm fine. Been through worse things," she admitted with a very distant memory of her fifth year and the visit to the Ministry of Magic coming through. It wasn't very strong and felt more like a dream disappearing quickly as she tried harder to remember it more vividly.

An awkward silence descended on them as Peter took the seat by her bed. "You've been very kind to me, Hermione," Peter told her nervously with a big swallow, "and I feel like such a coward for not standing up for you!" Hermione's face displayed her confusion as Peter went into a rant about how he was unworthy to be a Gryffindor and how no one should be his friend.

"Peter!" Hermione spoke firmly. He glanced up at her nervously. "If you were such a coward, you would never have been put into Gryffindor. And you especially wouldn't have been put in if you were not going to be loyal to your friends."

"But I wasn't-"

"Peter, you were!" she said firmly. "James, Sirius and Remus are your longest and best friends. You were being loyal to _them_. It may have been misguided slightly, but that doesn't matter." She watched him take in this information and saw his understanding across his features.

"I'm still sorry though- and so is Sirius," Peter added the latter quickly. Hermione pulled a face. She didn't feel like she deserved the apologies she was getting. It was her that had been in the wrong in her opinion; well, maybe not completely wrong, that didn't stop the guilt, though. "It was horrible seeing you fall down the stairs- I never want to see anything like that again!"

"I don't think I'll be doing it again anytime soon," Hermione laughed. "It was nice that you visited, Peter, and trust me, you don't have anything to apologise for, neither does Sirius- will you let him know?" Peter nodded quickly. "Good, now aren't you meant to be revising?" Peter's response was to leave quickly at the stern look she was giving him. The door clicked behind him as Hermione heard from Madam Pomfrey's voice from her office, "Gryffindors are sneakier than those Slytherins!"

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Hermione woke up early the next morning to a student groaning in agony as they were helped in by two of her friends. "It was Peeves!" she whinged. "Bloody puddles all down the second corridor!"

Hermione checked her watch; her exam was just over an hour away. Madam Pomfrey noticed her sitting up as she helped the girl on a bed across the way. "Miss Evans brought your robes and clean clothes for you a few minutes ago; they're on the chair." Hermione thanked her and moved quickly to get washed and changed.

Fifteen minutes later Hermione was as ready as she ever would be for this exam. Returning to the ward to pick up her things, she thanked Madam Pomfrey as she left and felt the nervous excitement she usually got before an exam.

Upon walking through the doors of the Hospital wing into the corridor leading to it Hermione found Mr Benedict Waverly waiting there with a big smile on his face that lit up his eyes. "It is time to return to the future, Miss Granger," he told her proudly.

"Right now?" Hermione asked shakily. Benedict Waverly gave her one nod. "Can I say goodbye to Lily and the others? And Sirius, I need to speak to him!"

"I'm afraid not, Miss Granger," Mr Waverly held an arm out for her to go with him. "We have found the plans to be now in position and in the right direction. You have done everything you were sent here to do."

Hermione followed him in silently as he led her to the corridor the Room of Requirement was on. "You need to think of the room it took shape when you were in it before travelling to this time," he instructed her cheerfully.

A whole range of emotions were racing through Hermione; the one that stood out most of all was relief. She was going back to a better future, a better time in school, a better life for Harry- a nicer Lucius and Draco Malfoy! Taking a moment, Hermione cleared her head as she thought of the library she'd needed at the time to revise in. Thinking of it firmly she walked up and down the corridor three times before the door appeared.

"Excellent," Mr Waverly cheered as he opened the door for her to enter. Hermione entered the room quickly and smiled when she saw the desk she'd been working at with the book she'd been revising from still on it. Wandering over to it, Hermione flicked through it and found the page that she'd highlighted for when she came back to it:

'_**Binding Rune **__– This rune is relatively new having only come about in 1976. It is a great source of magic for friends and family._'

"Harry found this book in his trunk and couldn't understand why he had it when he isn't even taking Ancient Runes," Hermione told Mr Waverly, knowing why it had been there now. "Whoever sent me here planned everything clearly."

"Take a seat, Miss Granger and I'll explain to you what is to happen," he instructed her. Sitting down at the desk, Hermione watched while he conjured up a bed from one of the tables in the room and took out a vial from his coat pocket. "You'll be put to sleep for one hour. While you're asleep everything you remember from your previous life will be replaced completely by your new memories."

"Will I not remember anything? What is to say that something goes wrong and it ends up worse?" Hermione asked in a panic.

"It'll be there," he reassured her gently, "but it will be like a dream you try to remember or a feeling of déjà vu- like you've been there before." Hermione visibly relaxed at this. "You've done a marvellous job; like he said you would."

"Will all my memories change in the same away as they have been changing?" Hermione moved over to the bed as she took the potion off him.

"No. This is filling in the blanks of the mundane things that led you between the more important changes you have made. You won't see it or feel it," Mr Waverly told her in a calming voice. "Ready?" Hermione's answer was to drink the contents of the potion. As she swallowed the last drop she felt the darkness take her swiftly.


	16. Chapter 16

**Disclaimer: **Not mine, as usual, it's all J K Rowling's!

**A/N: **Two reasons why this took slightly longer to post than I wanted it to. 1. This is how I saw the end, and my imagination pretty much wrote it for me, I never had a say. But I also felt like I was cheating you all out of a decent ending. So after writing this, for the past month I've tried every way possible to make it a different ending, however they all felt very forced and unworkable. I'm afraid this is it, the only way I could end this story. I hope it works for you all. Reason number 2. I was working on my very own writing forums! (Shameless plug going on here!) I'm in the process of doing my own website for writers, but I thought I would put the forums up first. They're still very new with very few members on. So I'm shamelessly begging you all to join and make my boards a fantastic place to hang out. You don't have to be a writer, just enjoy reading or having fun! The link can be found on my profile.

Anyway, thanks for all the reviews I've had on this story, I appreciate each and every one of them! Thank you for sticking with me for the past 2 and a half years, even during in my long gaps between updates! And just for you, **JoLanna**, I checked over this chapter for spelling mistakes and grammar errors! I'm just lazy at checking and that's why you'll find mistakes in my work...is very ashamed! Feel free to give me a good ol' flame if you find a mistake as I'll deserve it for not picking it up! Hope you all enjoy this very last chapter!

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**Chapter Sixteen**

_She dreamt of a close relationship with Sirius. She dreamt of Peter becoming a Death Eater to protect the Potters. She dreamt of lazy summer days with Harry and Ron. She dreamt of Daisy Potter following them round in her first year of Hogwarts. She dreamt of Draco Malfoy asking her to the Yule Ball and them falling out for a while because she said no. She dreamt of cryptic words being said to her by everyone she knew in the past. She dreamt of a Potions teacher called Professor Snape who was firm but fair. She dreamt of conversations with Remus. She dreamt of seeing Jazz, Rajni, Freya and Anna with their own families and their children growing up a few years behind Hermione. She dreamt of the morning before she'd left her own time and seeing the Potters, Sirius, Remus, Peter and the girls going to the Headmaster's office._

_She dreamt of a dead Voldemort; killed once and for all when he attempted to kill the Potters._

Hermione felt consciousness tickle her mind and forced herself to wake up fully. She felt groggy and her body moved clumsily. Peering through dry eyes Hermione found herself still in the Room of Requirement. She must have dozed off while revising. She didn't remember there being a bed here...wait...something stirred but sank away as quickly as it came. Sitting up took all her energy. A glance at her watch told her it was dinner time. Maybe she'd not eaten enough and was feeling the effects of it.

Finally standing up, Hermione gathered the book from the desk and her bag underneath it and left the Room of Requirement to find a starry-eyed Headmaster stood by the door. "Welcome back, Miss Granger," Professor Dumbledore greeted her.

Hermione's weak body slumped against the door as it was turning back to wall. "It's like a dream that won't come back to me," she answered croakily. "I know what has happened, but that is all."

"My instructions are to tell you not to fight it...and to take this," he handed her a small vial with blue liquid in it. She noted the hand that was holding it was feeble looking. "An unfortunate incident with a Horcrux," the Headmaster said cheerfully with a wink. Again, there was that dream fighting to resurface. Instead of trying to remember, Hermione took the potion. She instantly felt revived. "Are you ready to see them?"

"See who?" she questioned as she hiked her bag over her shoulder. Dumbledore's response was to begin walking down the corridor. Knowing better than to try and get anything out of him right now, Hermione simply followed.

It didn't take them long to reach the Headmaster's office. Slowly they walked up the stairs to his room and Hermione could hear voices the further up they went. Dumbledore opened the door to reveal a gathering of adults. Adults she knew but had gotten to know as teenagers; 

Lily, James, Sirius, Remus, Anna, Freya, Rajni, Jazz and Peter. Instinct took over and the first thing Hermione found herself doing was racing into Sirius' open arms.

"You never let me apologise!" Sirius whispered into her ear before placing her back on the floor. "Do you have any idea what that has been like?! For years I thought you'd left because of what I'd said!" Hermione shook her head. "And I had to put up with Lucius Malfoy walking round with information about you that he wouldn't give up! And then I had to meet you nearly seven years ago and keep quiet because you wouldn't have known anything!"

"I felt so guilty for being self-righteous about everything when in truth we didn't even know each other well enough for me to be like that. I was in the wrong for the way I spoke to you...and slapping you." Hermione felt all her emotions getting on top of her as all those memories fought to become clearer. Sirius squashed her into another hug.

"At least I don't have to watch what I say around you anymore," Sirius' voice reverberated in his chest into his Hermione's ear.

"Sirius, let the poor girl breathe, I'm sure she's a bit overwhelmed at the moment," Lily said softly as she pulled Sirius away. Hermione took in the small crowd gathered around her.

"When did you all find out?" Hermione asked, pulling the first question out of horde of them racing through her mind.

"Sirius spotted you at King's Cross when we were bringing Harry to the station in your first year. It didn't take us long to figure out you were the same Hermione _we_ knew as letter upon letter came home from Harry talking about his new friends," James explained to her. It was a little surreal for Hermione looking at these faces that not too long ago, for her, had been teenagers. Now they were adults with stubble, and wrinkles, and grey hairs coming through.

"If I was able to, I would have told you all from day one-" Hermione tried to explain quickly.

"Don't worry, sweetie," Jazz spoke up. "We know the rules," she giggled slightly, "you have no idea the research we've done over the years to figure out why you were there, but it's just not for us to know. Even this old boot here," she nudged her elbow against Dumbledore playfully.

"Ah yes, even this old boot cannot know everything," the Headmaster spoke cheerfully.

"Now listen," Sirius flung his arm round Hermione's shoulders, "what is this unhealthy obsession Lucius Malfoy and his son have with you?" She looked up to see the playfulness in his eyes.

"Give me strength! Why are you still bleating on about that?" Freya groaned in frustration. "Not everyone feels the need to pull pranks on Slytherins!"

Ignoring the small argument going on between Sirius and Freya, Lily handed Hermione a weary looking envelope. "It's the results for the exams you took...not that they'll mean much now as you've got to take them again," Lily explained to her, "I thought you might like to know what you got." Hermione fingered the crinkled edges and stared at the name of her past; Hermione Roper. Again, memories wafting through like a summer cloud with no defining edges.

"I'll keep it as something to remember my time in the past," Hermione finally said as she pocketed the envelope.

"Miss Granger has someone else that would like to see her, but I'm afraid you all have to leave," Dumbledore suddenly told them all.

"Hang on! I've got years worth of questions that I need answering first!" James said indignantly.

"Make that two of us!" Sirius spoke up.

"Three!" Peter added. The group turned to look at him in bemusement. "What? Like I just follow everything you all do?" Hermione smiled at him, seeing clearly the strong man he had now grown up to be.

"You will have time for them all soon, but now is not that moment," Dumbledore told them as if he were speaking to his students.

"Oh come on!" Sirius groaned. "She left me to years of guilt!"

"Sirius!" Lily snapped, "You've waited this long, surely you can wait a little while longer!" She turned to Hermione as they began to leave the room. "Some things never change, believe me," she said with a soft smile.

Once they'd left, Hermione noticed a figure step out from the shadows at the other end of Dumbledore's office. She gasped when she realised who it was; he truly was the image of his father, even as an adult. Yet there was no mistaking Lily's eyes in him, especially as she had now seen them for herself. "I shall be at dinner," Dumbledore let them know as he left the room too.

"Harry?" Hermione found herself asking the man in his forties, she judged. She wasn't far off. The 38 year-old Harry Potter moved towards her with a smile that showed the wrinkles around his eyes that come with age. "Did you send me?"

"You were the only one I ever trusted to do something as important as this," he explained to her. "I grew up to be an Unspeakable and stumbled onto a room full of files containing Life Plans that never came into fruition." Hermione's head swam trying to take in this information. "Then I found mine, and Dean Thomas' and Draco Malfoy's- and yours. We were meant for happier lives."

"Why just ours, Harry? What about all those other people that were meant to have happier lives?" Hermione questioned while taking a seat by Dumbledore's desk.

"Ours were the only ones linked strongly to the return of Voldemort. Take away some of the decisions my parents and their friends made in school- even Lucius Malfoy, and you take away the path that led to his control of the Magical world," Harry explained to her the complexity of it as best he could. "Originally my parents seemed to get together out of fear and determination to not have Voldemort control them. They were more a joining of wills than love. I knew if I added someone as big-hearted and straight-forward as you into their lives, they'd understand why they fought each other a little better."

"What happened when I left?" Hermione asked as she tried to keep on top of what he was telling her.

"When you forgave my dad the day before you left 1976 was the day that my mum kissed my dad for the first time," Harry said with a shy smile. "She was so happy that he was finally growing up and acting less like a child. You did that. You got them together nearly a year before they were meant to." Hermione found herself smiling with pride. "And you made Lucius Malfoy stop the vicious cycle of prejudice that runs through his family. You made him stand up for what he believed in and it made a better man out of him."

"What's he doing now?" Everything felt like it was slotting into place a little better now. "I've got these memories of Lucius and his family being nice to me, but it's still feeling a little new to me."

"Don't get me wrong," Harry laughed, "He's still a snob, but he's not the spiteful person he was. This time round he's actually instilled some care into Draco as a boy rather than force him to be the bitter child I grew up with. And I think having a daughter softened him up too." Harry smirked.

"What about Dean Thomas? Why him?"

"Dean was meant to grow up knowing who he was and who is dad was. Voldemort took that away from him before he was even born," Harry told her. "And that's all it was. Nothing too complex with that story."

"Just like that, everything is how it should be?" Hermione asked eagerly.

"Well..." Harry narrowed his eyes playfully, his glasses moving up his nose as he scrunched it up.

"What?" Hermione asked in a panic.

"Something happened that wasn't meant to, but as I see it, it's a good thing." Hermione stared Harry out willing him to tell her before she burst with curiosity. "How do you feel about older men?"

"Excuse me?" Harry sat down on the edge of the desk to the side of Hermione. She got it. "Harry, you're nothing more than a brother to me. And how would this work? You're from a future that probably doesn't exist now."

"Not me!" He laughed heartily.

Hermione frowned in confusion. "You can't mean James- Harry-"

"Merlin, no!" Harry laughed again. "Although I did wonder if you were going to end up being my mother." He gave her a wink as Hermione laughed nervously.

"If you tell me it's Lucius Malfoy then I'm going back!" Hermione warned him. Harry just gave her a look that told her she was being ridiculous now. "Who then?" Hermione asked.

"Sirius!"

"Ibegyourpardon!" Hermione said in one breath not sure if she'd just heard the right name. "What do you mean, 'Sirius'?"

"And I thought women knew everything?" Harry teased.

"Harry, tell me what you mean?" she begged pushing his knee.

Harry held his hands up defensively, "It's not my place, and on that note, my time is up nearly." He held his hand out to her and pulled her up onto his feet. He looked at her carefully then pulled her into a tight hug. "I look forward to growing up with you in this better life." When he let go of her, Hermione gave him a questioning look. "He's waiting for you outside." He turned her round and gave her a gentle push towards the door. She turned back to find him fading away. "Go live a happy life, Hermione." He disappeared as she nodded.

Just as Harry had said, Sirius was waiting outside on the top step for Hermione. She paused a moment before closing the door and moving to sit with him. Sirius didn't look at her but kept staring at his clasps hands as he leant his elbows on his knees. "I always thought from the day I met you that you would have married one of the girls...mainly Jazz because she was just like you," Hermione told him nervously. He still didn't look at her.

"Lily knew- I don't know how, but she just seems to know everything," Sirius spoke quietly without moving. "I was so angry with you for seeing such an ugly side of me when we pulled that prank on Severus that I wanted to hurt you." Hermione placed her left hand on top of his and he clasped onto it with both of his. He smiled sadly at her. "You know, I thought that James was going to be with you. Then when he announced on the last day of school he was going to marry Lily, I was stunned. And for a while I kept thinking maybe he was marrying Lily because he was waiting for you to come back."

"Why would you think that? We both knew they were meant to be together," Hermione said as she turned to face him, her hand still in his.

"You remember when I dragged you into that absurd scheme to get them together?" Sirius asked forgetting that it wasn't as long ago for her as it was for him. "Want to know why I did it?" Hermione nodded. "I thought if I just could make him see that he still fancied Lily instead of you, then I wouldn't have to lose you to my best friend." Hermione felt a pang of unadulterated love for him right there and then, still seeing the 18 year old boy she had left not so long ago. "I never thought it would actually work, and I was ecstatic when it did. But then you saw what we did and it all went wrong."

"Sirius, I would have spoken to you if I'd known I had to leave so soon afterwards," Hermione told him gently.

"I know that now," he smiled softly at her. "Lily thinks that you were there to make James grow up so that she would see the man he could be instead of the boy he was. So even though we all thought James wanted you, he admitted it was never like that."

"Trust me it wasn't," Hermione added hastily. "Harry looks so much like him and it would be like kissing my brother!" He laughed at the look of disgust on her face.

"And I know that now too!" Sirius stroked her face. "So how _do_ you feel now that I'm older?" Sirius asked with a cheeky smile.

"Can't say I've thought about it much," Hermione said with a mock innocence as she looked around the spiral of stairs. Sirius' response was to pull her in for a kiss.

"How about now?" he asked as he pulled away. Hermione kissed him with her answer, beginning the rest of her very own _happy_ adult life.


End file.
